Puppet Shows: Inspiring Nationalism and Raising Tourism Awareness for Egyptian Children

This study sheds light on the importance of revitalization of the puppet shows in Egypt and its role in inspiring nationalism and raising tourism awareness for children. Puppetry has played an important role in disseminating knowledge in most parts of the world. Puppetry has been used traditionally in Egypt as a popular and an inexpensive medium to transmit knowledge about Egypt myths and legends. It is a dynamic art form that appeals to all age groups, this medium of communication has been selected to serve as an aid for rising tourism awareness either tangible or intangible for children. Concerning this issue, a very few children understand the importance of their heritage. Most of the children going to primary school remain within the narrow confines of the teaching and learning environment of their school, and most of them do not know anything about the broader issues of the heritage around them. The research was conducted to assess how can the puppet show inspire and bloom the desire of nationalism inside young children of the age between 6 and 12 years. For this purpose, a questionnaire survey was administered and distributed among 250 child whom were exposed to tourism knowledge through the puppet shows in a primary school, and also a focus group interview was employed with a group of ten puppeteers who perform entertainment puppet shows in The Cairo Puppet Theatre. The Results revealed that puppets are easier to transmit knowledge for children. They are an indirect educational tool to create fidelity and loyalty to their country as well as tourism awareness.