You will need to adjust your thinking to take in the tiny stage, which at first looks a bit silly. It has been said that there are no bad seats, as it is a small auditorium. However, the ticket prices are reasonable, and if you can, sit near the front. These are not full-size people after all, so the closer you are, the better.

About 10 minutes into the show, you will forget that you are looking at puppets. (Full stop.) You will find yourself questioning why the actors' lips aren't moving as they sing. You will even be a bit shocked when a puppet moves across the stage in a way a person never could. And you will probably be a bit taken aback at the giant puppeteers (giant!) who appear, via a mirror, at a 45-degree angle onstage at the end of the play to take their bows.

The theater has been around for more than 90 years, and it is on many must-see lists for Salzburg - for good reason. The theater leans heavily on the operas of Mozart (no surprise), but they also perform a limited number of operas by other composers, including Rossini and Strauss.

If you get a chance, let this magical experience take you away. If you love opera, just do it. If you are with someone not yet enamored of the art form, this is an interesting way of introducing them to opera’s delights.

The elegant theatre where the performance is held is on the right bank, near Old Town. When you enter the theater you will see amazingly detailed marionette puppets in glass cases lining the walls. Their beautiful costumes are very impressive. The theater is designed so that the puppets look larger than they actually are when they are on stage. Inside, huge crystal chandeliers drip in various spots over the audience.

Since marionettes can’t sing, the theater company performs to recordings of the 18th and 19th century operas made by the world’s leading orchestras and singers. The costumed puppets perform hilarious physical feats and have an amazingly life-like range of expression. Papageno, the bird catcher from Mozart’s "Magic Flute" was costumed in a bright outfit of red, green and yellow bird feathers.

There is a comforting pleasure in watching the marionettes perform. The audience accepts the spirit of youth emanating from the stage. After about fifteen minutes, you forget you are not watching real people. Don’t think this is a children’s attraction. Most of the audience were adults and treated the performance as a traditional opera.

Our adventure here was neat, and I’m glad we did it because it was a different way to experience Mozart rather than visiting his home, but it didn’t hold our attention for the entire opera. It may have been our jet lag kicking in, but the uncomfortable chairs and German opera music made us a bit sleepy. I think if there were subtitles projected in English it may have held our attention. The story of the opera was provided in the playbill, but we were having a bit of a hard time keeping up with the story since we did not know what was going on.

The marionettes really are amazing little creations, but I recommend you like German opera if you plan to see a performance here.