The Museum of Puppets "Cenderelli", housed in Palazzo balbi, exhibits the collection of Angelo Cenderelli who was the creator, builder, set designer and animator of his own puppet theatre, in continuity with the intense activity of puppeteers that developed in Genoa in the 19th century with a large public following in the many permanent theatres in various parts of the city. The tradition, as in other parts of Italy, died out in 1950.
The collection is of extreme interest not only for the richness and complexity of the materials - 70 puppets, 265 pieces of costume material, furniture, cabinets, tooling, over 100 scripts, backdrops and proscenium - but also for the opportunities it offers to fully re-propose an ancient art. In this sense, the new setting has also provided a small theatre to re-propose, during the visits, moments of representation.