Theater Waidspeicher e. V. is a professional ensemble puppet theater founded in 1979. It has been supported by the Free State of Thuringia and the state capital Erfurt since 1993. With the medieval Waidspeicher on Domplatz, the theater has had its own permanent venue with 142 seats since 1986. In addition to the repertoire of 13 productions for all age groups, five new premieres are staged each season. More than 25,000 spectators come to the approximately 300 performances each year to be enchanted by the open play with hand, rod and table puppets, marionettes, quadrupeds as well as flat and shadow figures. As the smallest professional theater in the Free State, with an ensemble of 27 employees in total, Theater Waidspeicher is an important cultural ambassador for Thuringia. In 40 years, the ensemble has been a guest in 121 German cities, in 21 European countries and beyond to Israel, Turkey, the USA, Taiwan, Siberia, India, Canada and Mexico. Theater Waidspeicher is the organizer of the International Puppet Theater Festival Synergura. The artistic director since 2009 is Sibylle Tröster.