Ballard Institute and Museum of Puppetry
Ballard Institute and Museum of Puppetry
Ballard Institute and Museum of Puppetry
4
11:00 AM - 7:00 PM
Tuesday
11:00 AM - 7:00 PM
Wednesday
11:00 AM - 7:00 PM
Thursday
11:00 AM - 7:00 PM
Friday
11:00 AM - 7:00 PM
Saturday
11:00 AM - 7:00 PM
Sunday
11:00 AM - 7:00 PM
About
The Ballard Institute and Museum of Puppetry is one of America’s hidden treasures—a superb collection of over 2,500 puppets from all over the world; an archive of books, manuscripts, posters, drawings, audio-visual materials and photographs all covering the history of puppetry. It is also the new home of the Puppeteers of America’s Audio-Visual Collection: the largest collection of videotapes, films, and other media about puppetry in the United States. The Ballard Institute curates and produces exhibitions of puppetry, both at the Ballard Museum and for touring across the United States. The Institute also offers workshops, museum tours, artists’ forums, film showings, performances, and other events and programs that promote the art of puppetry as a twenty-first-century art form with deep historic and global roots.
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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
4.0
21 reviews
Excellent
8
Very good
6
Average
6
Poor
1
Terrible
0
Chaya4
45 contributions
Aug 2023 • Family
Stop in if you're already in Storrs for another event. The puppets on display are beautiful and their history interesting to learn about. It's located in Storrs center right next to B&N but it's a very small set of window displays in a hallway. We spent 15-20mins here including browsing thebookstore.
Written September 10, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
jeffysgirl
Northeast515 contributions
Located on the UCONN campus this little museum is sure to put a smile on your face! My husband and I were cheerfully greeted as we walked into the museum and quickly offered a tour. The suggested donation was $3.00 each. Our tour guide was a puppetry student. This years exhibit is called "Puppets Through the Lens: The Puppet in Film, Television, and the Internet." It was very interesting to see the variety of puppet types. We were also shown how the puppet is developed from original concept to final product. The puppets range from early classic puppets such as Lamb Chop to very high tech puppets. There are many flat screen televisions set up that show the puppets on the shows, movies, etc. that they were designed for which was a lot of fun to see. Our guide was very knowledgeable and interesting.
Each year the exhibit changes. If you do not want a guided tour, there are many signs around the room that make it possible to tour on your own. Since there is no additional charge for the guide and she enhanced our tour so much, I would highly recommend taking advantage of this benefit. There is also a nice little gift shop that sells anassortment of puppets.
Even though the museum is filled with puppets, I think it is more enjoyable for adults and older children than young children. Young children might be disappointed that they can't touch everything. Also, if you're not interested in learning about what you are looking at, the museum could be walked through in just a short period of time. Cookie Monster is there and a few other puppets that young children might recognize but I still am not sure how much they would appreciate it.
After our enjoyable tour, we headed over to the UCONN Dairy Bar for a tasty ice cream treat which was a great way to end our adventure.
Each year the exhibit changes. If you do not want a guided tour, there are many signs around the room that make it possible to tour on your own. Since there is no additional charge for the guide and she enhanced our tour so much, I would highly recommend taking advantage of this benefit. There is also a nice little gift shop that sells anassortment of puppets.
Even though the museum is filled with puppets, I think it is more enjoyable for adults and older children than young children. Young children might be disappointed that they can't touch everything. Also, if you're not interested in learning about what you are looking at, the museum could be walked through in just a short period of time. Cookie Monster is there and a few other puppets that young children might recognize but I still am not sure how much they would appreciate it.
After our enjoyable tour, we headed over to the UCONN Dairy Bar for a tasty ice cream treat which was a great way to end our adventure.
Written August 4, 2008
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
intlfOOdie2013
Chicago, IL58 contributions
Jun 2014 • Friends
It is now so accessible. Plan a whole afternoon around your visit. Take the children to Horsebarn Hill to see the animals; eat ice cream at the UConn Dairy Bar; go to a puppet show. The program is constantly changing with some hands on classes on puppetry. The variety of puppets is amazing.
Written July 4, 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
xmimihx
Glastonbury, CT1 contribution
the museum is a wonderful stop if you're in the storrs area. they run off of donations so you can give them whatever you please. the current exhibits are beautiful. The Haines marionettes are all storybook characters like Cinderella or Goldilocks so it was fun for the kids to guess which storybook characters they were looking at and great for myself to just admire the handiwork of Frank and Elizabeth Haines. The Punch and Judy puppets were equally as interesting because you could see how different artists over the last three centuries interpreted hand puppets and Mr. Punch.
The gift shop also provided the kids with a wide variety of puppets to choose from. They have everything from sesame street characters to sharks, dragons, cats, and much more.
The gift shop also provided the kids with a wide variety of puppets to choose from. They have everything from sesame street characters to sharks, dragons, cats, and much more.
Written June 19, 2010
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Tuttle
Virginia17 contributions
Aug 2019
The Ballard institute is the result of a single person's determination to celebrate and popularize puppetry. He gathered what is probably a unique collection of relevant material during his academic career - this is the heart of the Institute. A visit can be short, glancing over the materials, or it can be in greater depth. The institute also has events and programs, displays and shows on occasion. In Town center in Mansfield it could be a side show to a nice meal or shopping.
Written September 4, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Jtries
Sandwich, MA54 contributions
Mar 2018 • Couples
This is more of a display rather than a museum. However, the staff was incredibly nice and informative, and had fun looking around for about 20 min. The suggested donation is $5 each, but it truly is just a suggestion, making it welcome to all.
Written June 25, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
BlueRobin
United States34 contributions
Sep 2014 • Couples
The museum has moved into Storrs Downtown next to the UConn Coop Bookstore. Has some interesting, informative displays that are unique and make you appreciate the fine art of puppetry. Take a few minutes to stop in and enjoy the museum.
Written November 11, 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Sabrina H
Storrs, Connecticut, United States15 contributions
Jul 2014 • Friends
As an amateur puppet enthusiast I enjoyed the many offerings the Ballard was able to provide in such a small space. I especially liked being able to take photographs in fun poses! They also had a small interactive exhibit where they gave you directions on how to make your own puppet, but much of the material had been used up by the time my friend and I sat down to make our craft. Another one of my favorite parts was that it is connected to the bookstore, so especially in the rain, you are good to spend at least an hour between the two! :) The suggested donation was $5.
Written July 13, 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
W-Hartford_CT
Connecticut855 contributions
Mar 2013 • Family
It has been a few months since I visited the Museum of Puppetry. It is located at what is called the Depot Campus of the University of Connecticut, just a couple of miles away from the main campus. The main advantage is parking--you don't have to park at one of the campus parking garages and walk. You can park nearby. This will change for the fall when it moves to Storrs Center, a new development adjacent to the campus, but there is a parking garage right there. The University of Connecticut has one of the few puppetry programs in the country and this is reflected in the holdings at the Museum. Definitely a place to visit if you are in the eastern part of the state.
Written July 29, 2013
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Missartsycraftsy
Brookline, MA94 contributions
Feb 2018 • Friends
If you know and love puppets, worth the trip if in the area...not sure I would travel days or miles to visit.
Odd location right next to UConn.
Suggested donation 5 dollars.
Probably a great place for puppet shows for little kids.
Museum...pushing it!
Odd location right next to UConn.
Suggested donation 5 dollars.
Probably a great place for puppet shows for little kids.
Museum...pushing it!
Written February 24, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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