As part of its Spring Puppet Forum Series, the Ballard Institute and Museum of Puppetry at the University of Connecticut will host three forum events on Wednesdays in February through April at 7 p.m. in the Ballard Institute Theater located at 1 Royce Circle in Storrs Center. The Spring Puppet Forum schedule includes:

February 3: Roger Danforth, Playwriting for Puppet Theater

Noted director and dramaturg Roger Danforth, who also leads playwriting for puppetry workshops at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center, will talk about the particular needs and possibilities playwrights face when writing for actors and objects

February 24: Alexander Gref and Elena Slonimskaya, Russian Puppet Theater

Join us in a discussion with two of Russia’s most dynamic puppeteers as they show us how the rich traditions of Russian vertep and Petrushka puppetry survive and flourish in contemporary performance and art therapy in the Russian Republic.

April 20: Laura Heit, The Puppetry and Animation of Laura Heit

In conjunction with her exhibition at the Ballard Institute—The Bureau of Small Requests—artist and professor Laura Heit (Northwest Pacific College of Art) will discuss her richly varied work in stop-motion film, live-action puppetry, drawing, and computer animation.

Admission to these events is free (donations greatly appreciated!), and refreshments will be served. Come early and experience our puppet exhibitions, as well as the video resources in our library nook. Visit bimp.uconn.edu for more information.

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