Three performance nights of the 12-member troupe in Lisbon saw all the tickets sold out, said the theatre’s Director Vuong Duy Bien at a press briefing in Hanoi on July 24 after his Portugal tour.

The festival drew 23 puppetry troupes, including 13 from Portugal and 10 from other countries.

Mr Bien said his theatre plans to send troupes to puppetry festivals in Israel in August and in Spain in November. He also said that Vietnam will host the International Puppetry Festival in 2008.