The Ballard Institute will be closed on Sunday, 3/31 and will reopen for regular business hours on Wednesday, April 3.
Month: March 2024
Taking Care: Puppets and Their Collectors Puppet Forum on 3/27
As part of its 2024 Spring Puppet Forum Series, the Ballard Institute and Museum of Puppetry is pleased to host Taking Care: Puppets and Their Collectors, a discussion with UConn Dramatic Arts Professor Dr. Jungmin Song, on Wednesday, March 27, 2024 at 7 p.m. at the Ballard Institute Theater, located at 1 Royce Circle in Downtown Storrs. This forum will also be broadcast via Ballard Institute Facebook Live (facebook.com/BallardInstitute).
In conjunction with the Ballard Institute’s new exhibit, Dr. Jungmin Song and Dr. John Bell will discuss the various puppet collectors whose donations have built the Ballard Institute’s puppet collections, from 1930s marionettes to Sicilian pupi, overhead projector innovations, and Frank Ballard musicals. This event is co-sponsored by the UConn Humanities Institute.
Dr. Jungmin Song is Assistant Professor in Residence at the Department of Dramatic Arts, Research Associate at the Ballard Institute and Museum of Puppetry, and a performance artist. Korean-born, she studied Costume and Textile at Seoul National University and Theatre Design at Central Saint Martins, University Arts London before completing a Ph.D. in performance at the University of Roehampton, London. Her research interests include contemporary theater, performance art, and puppetry. She curated the exhibitions Shakespeare and Puppetry (2020) and Puppetry’s Racial Reckoning (2021) at the Ballard Institute. She has published in Performance Research, Theatre Journal, Contemporary Theatre Review, and Asian Theatre Journal and was the editor of a special issue of Puppet Notebook on Shakespeare and puppetry.
Admission to this event is free (donations greatly appreciated!), and refreshments will be served. For more information or if you require accommodation to attend a forum, please contact Ballard Institute staff at 860.486.8580 or bimp@uconn.edu.
Two Dinosaurs are Better than One by Talking Hands Theatre on 3/23
As part of the 2024 Spring Puppet Show Series, the Ballard Institute and Museum of Puppetry is excited to welcome back Anna Sobel of Talking Hands Theatre of Western Massachusetts to perform Two Dinosaurs are Better than One on Saturday, March 23, 2024, at 11 a.m. in the Ballard Institute Theater, located at 1 Royce Circle in Downtown Storrs. The performance will replace The Gottabees performance, which was canceled due to unforeseen circumstances.
Meet different kinds of dinosaurs from the Jurassic Era and find out what the dinosaurs plan to do about that big carnivore, Allosaurus, who is pushing everyone else around! Catchy, original songs and bright tabletop puppets make this show fun for the whole family. The show runtime is approximately 40 minutes.
Talking Hands Theatre was founded in 2004 by artist Anna Sobel, who has been a professional puppeteer since 1998. In 2003 she was the recipient of a Fulbright Fellowship to study puppetry in India as a tool for social change and education. She is now based in Western Massachusetts and tours all over New England to perform. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit bimp.ticketleap.com/dressed
Ticket Prices: Adults: $12; Members/Seniors: $10; Students: $8; Kids: $6 (12 years and under).
Tickets can be purchased in advance at the Ballard Institute and Museum of Puppetry, by calling 860-486-8580, or online at bimp.ticketleap.com. A surcharge will be added to any purchases made online. Tickets may also be purchased at the Ballard Institute on the day of the performance starting at 10 a.m. There will be open seating and no reservations. Visitors can park in the Storrs Center Garage located at 33 Royce Circle. For more information about these performances or if you require accommodation to attend this event, please contact Ballard Institute staff at 860-486-8580 or bimp@uconn.edu.