A new show, Cabinet of Curiosities: how disability was kept in a box is coming to Manchester Museum in June.
Written and performed by the critically acclaimed actor Mat Fraser, it takes the form of a performance lecture and uses artefacts in museum collections to explore perceptions of disability.
The performance is part of project called Stories of a Difference Kind, led by the Research Centre for Museums and Galleries at the University of Leicester and funded by the Wellcome Trust and Arts Council England, with Mat Fraser, the Hunterian Museum at the Royal College of Surgeons, the Science Museum, the Royal College of Physicians and SHAPE, with advice and support from the Smithsonian Institution.
The project is trying to shift and inform attitudes to disability and create new narratives. Fraser has had access to artefacts and portraits across many museum collections.
Drawing on inspiration gained from sifting through the many objects, medical specimens, photographs and papers held in the collections of the Manchester Museum, the Hunterian Museum at the Royal College of Surgeons, Royal College of Physicians and the Science Museum, Mat explores the part that medical advances and the development of the medical profession have historically played in shaping our present day perceptions of disability.
The Performance lasts approximately 75 minutes with no interval. There will be a post-performance discussion.
Ticket prices
£5
Concessions: £3
Booking
Contact 0161 275 2635 or museum@manchester.ac.uk
