[Puppetry & Dance] The Great Zodiac Animal Race: Collaborative Performance

The performance will begin right after the 3rd Friday Free Admission Museum Tour, which runs from 6:00 to 6:45 PM. The tour is also free and you can RSVP through our website.

Join us for a magical evening of puppetry and dance in a collaborative performance by Tom Lee and Yoshinojo Fujima, aka Rika Lin. Experience Tom's signature show, "The Great Zodiac Animal Race," in its final presentation of the Year of the Dragon before transitioning into the Year of the Snake. This performance is designed to create an immersive experience, beautifully integrated with the marvelous collection at the Heritage Museum of Asian Art.

Please note tours may be canceled or postponed due to unforeseen circumstances.

ABOUT THE SHOW (The Great Zodiac Animal Race)

Growing up in Hawai'i, Tom Lee's memories of Lunar New Year* included narcissus blooms, tasty dim sum dishes and bowing to your elders before running off to your room to open your lucky red envelope with money in it! This charming shadow puppet show retells the classic Lunar New Year zodiac tale with animals inspired by Asian languages and pictograms. Suitable for all ages. Originally commissioned by the Art Institute of Chicago.

Note: The Lunar New Year, based on a lunisolar calendar in China and other Asian countries, typically occurs in January or February on the first day of the first lunar month. This year, the Lunar New Year was celebrated on 10 February 2024 (Year of the Dragon) and next year, it will be celebrated on 29 January 2025 (Year of the Snake)

Credit: Performed by Tom Lee / Music by Tatsu Aoki, Jamie Kempkers and Rami Atassi / Puppets designed by Chicago Puppet Studio: Jaerin Son, KT Shivak and Mark Blashford / Special thanks to Chicago International Puppet Theater Festival, La MaMa Experimental Theater, Blair Thomas, Denise Greber, Federico Restrepo, Averly Sheltraw

ARTIST BIO

Tom Lee is a puppet artist, designer and director based in Chicago. He began his career at La MaMa in New York. He is a student of Japanese master puppeteer Koryū Nishikawa V with whom he created Shank’s Mare (2015) and Akutagawa (2023). In addition to his original work for puppet theatre, his performances include War Horse (Broadway), Florencia en el Amazonas & Madama Butterfly (Metropolitan Opera) and The Queen of Spades (Lyric Opera Chicago). He is co-director of the Chicago Puppet Studio and Chicago Puppet Lab. .

Yoshinojo Fujima (aka Rika Lin) is an interdisciplinary artist, dancemaker, and Grandmaster in Fujima-style Japanese classical dance and is part of the postwar Japanese American diaspora. Her process and art springs forth from the complete immersion in traditional practice and then ‘sonar pings’ as questions, challenges, and then fireworks into a coalesced impression. She has performed her original works and as part of many collaborations at Links Hall, the Chicago Cultural Center, the Pritzker Pavilion, and the Museum of Contemporary Art (MCA), where she premiered her full length work Asobi: Playing within Time in 2018.

Support for this event is provided by the Gaylord & Dorothy Donnelley Foundation.

Accessibility

The Heritage Museum of Asian Art's Entrance is on West 35th Street. Take the elevator to the third floor and turn right to the Museum Reception Desk. Accessible and standard toilets are located on the same floor. Free parking space is available next to the museum via West 35th Street.

If you have any programming questions, don't hesitate to get in touch with or 312-842-8884.

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Host or Publisher Heritage Museum of Asian Art