On the face of it, it seems unlikely that a marionette show might be just the ticket for a sophisticated, hip, downtown audience - but it is. Tinka's New Dress is an amazing blend of allegory, satire and hilarious comedy with roots in history, when puppetry became a kind of ideological battleground on which Czech patriots subverted Nazi propaganda.

Here the playing area is filled by a circus carousel, with an array of puppets sitting on the usual model animals. It is set in a totalitarian regime called The Common Good, which represses individual thought and action. Carl, a young puppeteer, leaves his old, subdued mentor Stephan to exercise his right to artistic freedom. He loses the battle, but passes the torch to others who may win the war.

There is a rich play here, a complete creation of characters, motivation and action. Carl's sister Tinka tries to help him, as does her lover, a drag queen named Morag and Astrid van Craig, a wealthy socialite. Their stories, too, are told, all part of a convincing whole.

A small puppet theatre is shifted to front stage at times to host Carl's own show, a nice and ironic intricacy. It has two main clown-type characters; Franz, a raucous loudmouth, and Schnitzel, a fey little creature who has begun to wonder who is jerking him around. There is also a convulsively funny fat lady, who must eventually sing. In these scenes, audience involvement is total and sublime.

All of this theatre magic is created and performed by Canadian Ronnie Burkett, who manipulates his marionettes with perfect control, and furnishes them with apt voices. It is an amazing feat, in a show which is substantial and satisfying, certainly a Festival winner.

Runs until Saturday.