After Breath is the entrance to the most intimate space of the Papermoon Puppet Theatre. In this book, friends, collaborators, researchers, audiences, and artists involved in Papermoon write their stories about being around or with Papermoon Puppet Theatre.

After The Breath collects a string of stories from creative workers coming from multiple backgrounds. The book also contains the creative endeavors of puppet theatre communities from around the world, who together with Papermoon, join hands in preserving their (puppetry) universe.

In this book review, we will hear about Papermoon's origin story from the perspective of Miguel Escobar Varela, researcher and assistant professor at the National University of Singapore (NUS), and also from Sue Giles, collaborator, best friend, and Artistic Director of the Polyglot Theater, Australia.

Contributor’s Profile

Miguel Escobar Varela

Miguel is a web developer, translator, and theatre researcher who has lived in Mexico, The Netherlands, Singapore, and Indonesia. He works as Assistant Professor of Theatre Studies at the National University of Singapore and Academic Advisor on Digital Scholarship at the NUS Libraries. He also directs the Contemporary Wayang Archive and convenes Digital Humanities Singapore. His main research interests are Indonesian theatre and digital humanities.

Sue Giles
Artistic Director/co-CEO Polyglot Theatre
Sue has been the Artistic Director of Polyglot Theatre since 2000, introducing participatory, immersive works and the interrogation of play in the company’s theatrical offerings for children. Sue has created and co-created over 40 works for the company during this time and her distinct child-centered creative processes have been the subject of forums and discussions nationally and internationally. She is the Vice President of ASSITEJ International - the global association of theatre for young audiences.

Maria Tri Sulistyani
(Founder, Co. Artistic Director of Papermoon Puppet Theatre)

Maria established the Papermoon Puppet Theatre based in Yogyakarta-Indonesia in 2006 without formal education in puppetry. To Maria, her puppetry journey has been a never-ending experiment, one that she believes as the bridge to communicate with other people.

Windy Ariestanty
(Editor, writer, and founder of patjarmerah)

Windy has more than 15 years of experience in the world of literacy and book publishing in Indonesia. She is involved as editor, writer, and contributor for Selepas Napas, the newest book from the Papermoon Puppet Theatre.

Windy is also the founder of patjarmerah, a literacy festival, and a traveling book market that aims to level access to literacy in Indonesia.