Robin Frohardt: Shopping Center of the Universe

Visual artist and puppeteer Robin Frohardt brings Shopping Center of the Universe to the Sarasota Opera House, presented in partnership with The Ringling. Curated by Dr. Elizabeth Doud as part of the Art of Performance season, the work blends detailed physical manipulation with a sharp critique of mass consumption. Frohardt constructs an immersive, highly tactile narrative out of discarded materials and sculpted objects, examining the ecological footprint of modern convenience. The staging forces the audience to reconsider the permanence of single-use items by elevating ordinary trash into complex, animated theatrical figures.