UNL’s Dia de los Muertos celebration closes with a puppetry performance of Swazzle’s “Dream Carver” at 7 p.m. Nov. 5 in the Lied Center for Performing Arts.

The Lied FamFest event includes a family-friendly, pre-show party starting at 5:30 p.m. The FamFest includes hands-on activities such as face painting and games. “Dream Carver” performers will lead a puppet-making activity. Amy Cordova, illustrator of the “Dream Carver” book, will be on hand to sign books and lead educational activities.

“Dream Carver” tells the story of a young boy named Mateo growing up in Oaxaca, Mexico, who carves his dreams into wooden toys that come to life. The Lied Center performance is a bilingual musical performance featuring Swazzle’s Broadway-trained puppeteers.

The story of “Dream Carver” introduces audiences to elements of Mexican culture, such as the traditional folk art of Oaxacan carving small wooden animals called juguetes. Swazzle brings Mateo’s whimsical, brightly colored toys to life through masterful puppetry in this 55-minute bilingual performance that inspires students to think creatively, try new things and follow their dreams.

Cordova lives and works in Santa Fe, N.M., where she is an artist, author, educator and award-winning illustrator of children’s books.

Tickets for Swazzle’s “Dream Carver” are available at http://www.liedcenter.org, at the Lied Center Box Office or by phone at 402-472-4747. Adult tickets are $16, student tickets $8.