The Ballard Institute and Museum Of Puppetry Announces Women's Suffrage Toy Theater Workshops And Pageant

The Ballard Institute and Museum of Puppetry at the University of Connecticut will offer free online toy theater workshops to design and build scenes for a new Women's Suffrage Puppet Pageant to be performed on the Ballard Institute's Facebook Live page as part of the reimagined 17th annual Celebrate Mansfield Festival.

These free theater workshops will take place Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 19 and 20 via Zoom. Registrants will build puppets and theaters on Saturday, Sept. 19 from 10 a.m. to noon ET, and then learn to perform and share their work with other participants on Sunday, Sept. 20 from 2 to 4 p.m. ET. Workshop participants will be invited to perform their short toy theater shows (three to five minutes) in the community Women's Suffrage Puppet Pageant on Saturday, Sept. 26 at 4 p.m. ET on Facebook Live.

The theme for this year's Ballard Institute community pageant for the Celebrate Mansfield Festival is a celebration of the women's suffrage movement. The year 2020 marks the 100th anniversary of the passage of the 19th Amendment in the United States, which guarantees and protects women's constitutional right to vote. The Ballard Institute would like to use this anniversary to acknowledge the complex history of the women's suffrage movement, and leadership of women of color, Native women, working-class women, and immigrant women in the struggle for suffrage; as well as the movement's intersections with abolitionism and other movements. To honor this milestone we propose to celebrate women's suffrage heroes and achievements around the world, including Ida B. Wells, Mabel Ping-Hua Lee, Jovita Idár, Zitkala-Sa, Isabella Beecher Hooker, Susan B. Anthony and others, noting the successes of the movement, and also its challenges in the face of racism and the strong forces opposed to suffrage.

No experience is necessary to participate in this two-part toy theater workshop and all ages may participate (adult supervision and assistance is required for children). There is no fee to participate (although donations are greatly appreciated!). Registration will be required by Wednesday, Sept. 16. Once a participant is registered, Ballard Institute staff will help them select the person or topic for their toy theater performance and provide a list of required and recommended materials. To register for the workshop, please fill out the registration form on the Ballard Institute website: bimp.uconn.edu/2020/09/03/womens-suffrage-pageant/. Workshop registration will be limited.

All workshop participants are encouraged to perform their short works (three to five minutes) as part of the Ballard Institute online pageant, which will be streamed on the Ballard Institute Facebook Live on Saturday, Sept. 26 at 4 p.m. ET. Participants may perform live or submit a recorded performance in advance. The pageant can be watched live on the Ballard Institute Facebook Live (www.facebook.com/BallardInstitute) and will be available afterwards on the Ballard Institute Facebook page and YouTube channel.

This community puppet project is sponsored by the Ballard Institute and Museum of Puppetry at the University of Connecticut and the Mansfield Downtown Partnership, Inc. For more information about the 17th Annual Celebrate Mansfield Festival, visit downtownstorrsfestival.org.

The Mansfield Downtown Partnership is an independent, non-profit organization comprised of the Town of Mansfield, the University of Connecticut, and individual business members and residents. The Partnership seeks to foster the continued development, management, and promotion of Downtown Storrs. For more information about the Partnership, visit mansfieldmdp.org.
bimp.uconn.edu/2020/09/03/womens-suffrage-pageant/

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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