The Ballard Institute To Present An Indian Shadow Theater Puppet Forum

As part of its 2023 Fall Puppet Forum Series and in conjunction with the Ballard Institute and Museum of Puppetry's current exhibit, Tradition and Revolution in Indian Shadow Puppetry, the Ballard Institute is pleased to host an Indian Shadow Theater puppet forum with Tradition and Revolution exhibition curator Rahul Koonathara, and renowned puppet scholars Dr. Claudia Orenstein and Dr. Matthew Cohen, on Tuesday, Oct. 17, 2023 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).

Rahul Koonathara is a UConn graduate student in the Department of Comparative Literature and Cultural Studies, and a 12th-generation puppeteer in the Pulavar family of Tholpavakoothu shadow performers in Kerala, India. Dr. Claudia Orenstein is a professor of theater at Hunter College and CUNY Graduate Center whose work focuses on performing object theater and puppetry forms in India and Japan. Dr. Matthew Cohen is Professor in the UConn Puppet Arts Program, and a scholar-practitioner specializing in global traditions of puppet theater, Indonesian performing arts, intercultural and transnational performance, and cultural heritage. Koonathara, Orenstein, and Cohen will discuss the spectacular South Indian shadow puppet traditions of Tolu Bommalatta and Tholpavakoothu, as well as recent innovations reflecting the changing nature of the form, all of which can be seen in the current Ballard Institute exhibit Tradition and Revolution in Indian Shadow Puppetry. The exhibition will be on display through Dec.17, 2023. To learn more about this forum, visit bimp.uconn.edu/2023/09/06/indian-shadow-forum.

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.

The Ballard Institute & Museum of Puppetry 1 Royce Circle, Suite 101B Storrs, CT 06268
860.486.8580 bimp.uconn.edu bimp@uconn.edu
Facebook: Ballard Institute and Museum of Puppetry
Twitter: @BallardPuppetry Instagram: @ballardinstitute

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