This text is based on a roundtable organised bythe five authors at the 2022 NOFOD conference inCopenhagen. As scholars and practitioners investedin the research and teaching of dance history ...bothinside and outside academia, we wanted to addressthe pressing issue of how ‘history’ is defined andpositioned within Nordic dance scholarship andpractices today. Dance, as we think of it and practiseit in our everyday lives, is far more diverse than theso-called ‘contemporary dance’ that the white authorslisted as scholars and practitioners in the conferencecall indicate.1 For this roundtable, we wanted to showthat dance theory and practice-led work in dance gofar beyond the Eurocentric idea of contemporarydance present in the conference call, and to advocatefor a more inclusive understanding of the practices ofmaking or researching dance in the future.
The tragedies of fifth-century Athens have frequently been used as a mouthpiece for social commentary. It is a genre that many directors and playwrights, particularly during times of uncertainty, ...societal change or devastation, have returned to time and again for inspiration. During the Covid-19 pandemic, a number of theatre companies have looked towards the dramas of the ancient Greeks to help their audiences make sense of the worrying and isolating situation they found themselves in. One tragedy in particular seemed most fitting for this collective experience: Sophocles’ Oedipus Rex. In this paper, I will explore why this tragedy appealed during the Covid-19 world crisis and how two separate theatre companies - Theater of War Productions, a professional group working in the field of applied drama; and Rickmansworth Players, a small amateur theatre group - used the play to curate cathartic discussions with the communities they engage with.
Silke Felber describes Jelinek's theater of (tragedy) traversal for the first time at the intersection of theater, literary, and cultural studies. In the form of a richly detailed study, this ...foundational work reveals gestures of lamentation and anger that extend back to antiquity while simultaneously pointing toward an uncertain future.
Silke Felber beschreibt Jelineks Theater der (Tragödien-)Durchquerung erstmals an der Schnittstelle von Theater-, Literatur- und Kulturwissenschaft. In Form einer materialreichen Studie bringt dieses Grundlagenwerk Gesten der Klage und der Wut zum Vorschein, die bis in die Antike und gleichzeitig in eine ungewisse Zukunft weisen.
The institutionalization of theatre studies gained prominence in the 21st century, bestowing academic status upon this emerging humanities field. This study analyzes the evolution of theatre studies, ...focusing on its emergence in Ukrainian academia. The research aims to meticulously examine the establishment and progression of theatre studies in Ukrainian universities, specifically the Department of Theatre Studies and Acting at Ivan Franko National University of Lviv. This unit exemplifies the transformative shift from a pragmatic, post-Soviet theatre theory to a Eurocentric orientation rooted in rigorous scientific foundations. The influence of the academic environment on Ukrainian theatre studies is highlighted, with universities serving as vital hubs for scholarly discourse and intellectual exchange. Innovative technologies further amplify this role by facilitating scientific exploration and education. The university's academic milieu fosters a dynamic interdisciplinary dialogue, enhancing the scholarly significance of theatre researchers' voices.
The book explores how the entry of Jews into modern Viennese society functioned "as theater" and with theatrical means, developing a praxeology of Jewish belonging and difference. Four studies ...address Jewish experiences of Modernity between performing and observing, social exposition and anti-Semitic oppression as modes of the theatrical. Theater thus unfolds as a multi-layered cultural practice as well as a "play and mirror form of life" (Stefan Zweig).
Das Buch beforscht, wie der Eintritt von Juden*Jüdinnen in die moderne Gesellschaft Wiens »als Theater« und mit theatralen Mitteln stattfand und entwirft so eine Praxeologie jüdischer Zugehörigkeit und Differenz. In vier Studien werden jüdische Erfahrungen der Moderne zwischen Zeigen und Beobachten, sozialer Schau und antisemitischer Bedrängnis als Modi des Theatralen zum Thema. Theater zeigt sich so als vielschichtige kulturelle Praxis wie als »Spiel- und Spiegelform des Lebens« (Stefan Zweig).
The volume aims to investigate the concept of ‘violence’ and its representation in different theatrical genres, both in original works and in adaptations that have been written and staged between the ...20th and 21st centuries. The book offers a wide-ranging reflection on this theme and the mechanisms implemented in playwriting to represent the different forms and voices of violence imposed and suffered.
Mothering Performance is a combination of scholarly essays and creative responses which focus on maternal performance and its applications from a variety of interdisciplinary perspectives. This ...collection extends the concept and action of ‘performance’ and connects it to the idea of ‘mothering’ as activity. Mothering, as a form of doing, is a site of never-ending political and personal production; it is situated in a specific place, and it is undertaken by specific bodies, marked by experience and context. The authors explore the potential of a maternal sensibility to move us towards maternal action that is explicitly political, ethical, and in relation to our others. Presented in three sections, Exchange, Practice, and Solidarity, the book includes international contributions from scholars and artists covering topics including ecology, migration, race, class, history, incarceration, mental health, domestic violence, intergenerational exchange, childcare, and peacebuilding. The collection gathers diverse maternal performance practices and methodologies which address aesthetics, dramaturgy, activism, pregnancy, everyday mothering, and menopause. The book is a great read for artists, maternal health and care professionals, and scholars. Researchers with an interest in feminist performance and motherhood, within the disciplines of performance studies, maternal studies, and women’s studies, and all those who wish to gain a deeper understanding of maternal experience, will find much of interest. The Open Access version of this book, available at www.taylorfrancis.com, has been made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives 4.0 license. Funded by University of South Wales
Spiel und Theater sind vielfältig verbunden, aber solange der Spielbegriff mit Harmlosigkeit assoziiert ist, nimmt er dem Theater Schärfe und Wirksamkeit. Gunter Lösel fragt deshalb nach einer ...Begriffserweiterung, die auch die dunkle Seite des Spiels umfasst. Zwischen Spiel, Wirklichkeit und Fiktion entwickelt er ein »Dreiweltenmodell des Theaters« und geht der Frage nach, warum die Spezies Mensch ein performatives Spiel entwickelt hat, in welchem sie sich negative Handlungen oder konflikthafte Situationen vor Augen führt. Durch Verbindungen zu Spieltheorie, Gaming, Philosophie, Performance-Studies und KI entsteht ein Reflexionsraum, der so den Widerspruch zwischen Harmlosigkeit des Spiels und Wirkungsmacht des Theaters auflöst.
Drawing on new research from the ERC project ‘Developing Theatre’, this collection presents innovative institutional approaches to the theatre historiography of the Global South since 1945. Covering ...perspectives from Africa, Asia, the Middle East, Latin America and Eastern Europe, the chapters explore how US philanthropy, international organisations and pan-African festivals all contributed to the globalisation and institutionalisation of the performing arts in the Global South. During the Cultural Cold War, the Global North intervened in and promoted forms of cultural infrastructure that were deemed adaptable to any environment. This form of technopolitics impacted the construction of national theatres, the introduction of new pedagogical tools and the invention of the workshop as a format. The networks of 'experts; responsible for this foreground seminal figures, both celebrated (Augusto Boal, Efua Sutherland) but also lesser known (Albert Botbol, Severino Montano, Metin And), who contributed to the worldwide theatrical epistemic community of the postwar years. Developing Theatre in the Global South investigates the institutional factors that led to the emergence of professional theatre in the postwar period throughout the decolonising world. The book’s institutional and transnational approach enables theatre studies to overcome its still strong national and local focus on plays and productions, and connect it to current discourses in transnational and global history.
