Prison Museum Odyssey
with Sean Kelley
The Pillowman Surround Programming | October 8 at 6pm (pre-show)
Why do we turn abandoned prisons and other sites of trauma into historic sites? What do we make of these places? Where does the desire for memorial turn into sensationalization? In keeping Martin McDonagh’s dark themes, Sean Kelley, Senior Vice President of Eastern State Penitentiary Historic Site, takes us on a tour of prison museums worldwide, examines his work at Eastern State, and leads a discussion on what these places could mean for us today.
Sean Kelley is a non-profit leader dedicated to creating challenging and meaningful museum experiences for broad audiences. He oversees all aspects of the visitor experience—including all exhibits, events, visitor services and public programs—at Eastern State Penitentiary Historic Site. He visits active prisons and is dedicated to centering the voices of incarcerated people in Eastern State’s public programming.