Title

Race and Representation: Creating a Puppet Production for the Smithsonian Institution

Authors

Brad Brewer

Files

Description

The Brewery Puppet Troupe was commissioned by the Smithsonian Museum’s Lemelson Center to undertake new creative challenge: a show featuring African American scientist Lewis Latimer, the nineteenth-century inventor instrumental in creating the electric light bulb. Brad Brewer was committed to showing how Latimer’s life was affected by America’s struggle with slavery and racial inequality, issues he considered equally important to Latimer's scientific achievements. Staff historians read and commented on all the drafts of the script, but the production still included comedic elements typical of a Brewery Troupe production. The project allowed the author to explore some of the hard realities of the black experience in America.

Publication Date

2019

Keywords

puppetry, performing objects, African American culture

Disciplines

African American Studies | Africana Studies | Arts and Humanities | Other Theatre and Performance Studies | Race, Ethnicity and Post-Colonial Studies | Theatre and Performance Studies

Recommended Citation

Brewer, Brad, "Race and Representation: Creating a Puppet Production for the Smithsonian Institution" (2019). Living Objects: African American Puppetry Essays. 1.
https://digitalcommons.lib.uconn.edu/ballinst_catalogues/1