Rašid Nikolić

was born on the year 1989 in Bosnia from a mixed family of Roma ethnicity.

The upcoming war in former Jugoslavia forces him and his family to flee to Germany as political refugees. They then find themselves in a camp for nomads in Italy, Turin.

This experience and his cultural and ethnic background deeply influence his career and artistic production.

After learning how to carve wood by his grandfather, he perfected his marionnette making skills in Ukraine, France and Spain.

Since 2012 he tours with his show “The Gipsy Marionettist”, also his artistic alias, which helps him meet the bohemien and romantic image often associated to his people, giving him an opportunity to relate to the audience and share what Roma culture truly is, without stereotypes or generalizations. 

In 2018 he creates “Freak Show”, for an adult audience, which meets freaky topics without modesty.

Since 2020 he is Professor of Puppet Theatre at the Albertina Academy of Fine Arts of Turin - Italy.

Since 2021 he’s able to showcase his political work as an activist thanks to his Stand-up Comedy show “Rom VS Tutti", that with ferocity and irony destroys all stereotypes on Roma culture.

He strongly believes in the mystic power of marionnettes as a way of escaping this realm, in their capacity to touch the deepest fears and highest possibilities of the human soul.