As part of its Spring Puppet Performance Series, the Ballard Institute and Museum of Puppetry at the University of Connecticut will present The Autobiography of James Mars: A Slave Born and Sold in Connecticut by Puppetsweat Theater on Saturday, February 13, 2016. There will be two showings, at 1:00 and 3:00 p.m., in the Ballard Institute Theater located at 1 Royce Circle in Storrs Center.
Follow the incredible story of a boy, James Mars, and his father, Jupiter Mars, as they negotiate the complicated slavery laws through Connecticut and the United States in the beginning of the nineteenth century. Based on a pamphlet written by James Mars himself, this production will explore the journey of a father and son escaping enslavement by a parson in Norfolk, Connecticut. The skilled puppeteers of Puppetsweat Theater, including Robert Bresnick, Margaret Carl, Linda Wingerter, Melissa Silvestri-Fletcher, and UConn Puppet Arts alumna Leslie Weinberg, will bring the journey to life. Watch history retold through intricate shadow work, video projections, and collaged paper puppets in this invigorating production. Recommended for children aged 9 and above.
Ticket Prices: Adults: $10; Students: $7; Kids: $5
Tickets will be sold in advance through the Connecticut Repertory Theatre Box Office located in the lobby of the Nafe Katter Theatre at 820 Bolton Rd, Storrs CT 06269. Tickets may be purchased in person at the box office, by calling (860) 486-2113, or online at https://itkt.choicecrm.net/templates/UCRT/index.php?prod=bimp. A $3.00 surcharge will be added to any purchases made online or over the phone. Tickets may be purchased at the Ballard Institute on the day of performance. There will be a limited number of seats. For more information about these shows, visit bimp.uconn.edu.
For more information, contact: Ballard Institute and Museum of Puppetry at (860)486-8580 or bimp@uconn.edu