Apologies for cross-posting, please pass on to any interested parties.
Regional Spaces, National Stages: Performance beyond London 1945-2010.
University of Reading, 17th September 2010
http://www.reading.ac.uk/ftt/research/ftt-givingvoice.aspx
Call for papers
The term 'regional theatre' is a contentious one, as was its predecessor
provincial theatre; implying as it does a performance culture that is
parochial and conservative, or a convenient network of staging satellites
for shows destined to launch themselves in London's West End.
The traditional historical narrative of performance outside London also
suggests a series of peaks and troughs relating directly to state subsidy,
both through local government bodies and responsiveness to a more
centralized Arts Council policy. In this scheme, 1945 marks the
establishment of the Arts Council of Great Britain, which continued the work
of the Council for the Encouragement of Music, and Arts (CEMA) in funding
individuals and companies to perform throughout Britain. In the 1960s, the
Arts Council launched its Housing the Arts scheme to build more performance
venues outside London creating a network of regional theatre spaces. In the
1970s, it funded a large variety of touring companies who took work to a
variety of performance spaces beyond this network. In the 1980s and 1990s,
reductions in funding saw the closure of spaces and companies before the
noughties ushered in a new renaissance in cities such as Birmingham,
Sheffield and Liverpool, as well as new national theatres in Scotland and
Wales.
The symposium 'Regional Spaces, National Stages' will set out analyse the
role of performance outside London in Britain's theatrical ecology and seeks
contributions which supplement or challenge existing narratives, either
through studies of specific companies, venues or localities or by addressing
wider topics such as
* notions of local, regional and national and their relationship to performance
* ethnicity & regional theatre
* metropolitan / urban / suburban / rural theatre;
* regional theatre as a conceptual / imagined space
* relationships between regional theatres and touring companies
* the role of regional theatre in training and developing practitioners
* regional theatre's contribution to the social and economic impact of an area
* models of regional theatre outside the UK
* historiography of regional theatre 1945-present
This is by no means meant as an exhaustive list and papers on other areas
would be welcomed. The symposium will include speakers ranging from
academics working in this area as well as practitioners and critics
including:
* Daniel Evans, artistic director of the Crucible Theatre Sheffield
* Lyn Gardner, theatre critic of the Guardian
The symposium forms part of a five year AHRC funded project, 'Giving Voice
to the Nation': The Arts Council of Great Britain and the Development of
Theatre and Performance in Britain 1945-1995. The project, a collaboration
between the University of Reading and The Victoria & Albert Museum, aims to
explore the relationships between subsidy, policy and practice through an
investigation of the archive of the Arts Council of Great Britain held at
the V&A. The project comprises of three major strands: histories and policy
of regional theatre, touring companies and new writing. This symposium is
the first in a series of events aimed at exploring these areas.
Please send a 250 word abstract of your proposed paper to Dr Graham
Saunders, University of Reading. Email: [log in to unmask] by 31st
May 2010
Further details about the symposium can be found on the website:
http://www.reading.ac.uk/ftt/research/ftt-givingvoice.aspx
Information about fees and booking will be made available shortly.
- --------------------------------------------------------------
Decode: Digital Design Sensations
In partnership with SAP
The Porter Gallery
8 December 2009 - 11 April 2010 at V&A South Kensington
Book now on www.vam.ac.uk
Sit Down: Seating for Kids
6 February - 5 September 2010 at V&A Museum of Childhood
Admission free
Keep in touch - visit www.vam.ac.uk and sign up for our regular
e-newsletter
n --------------------------------------------------------------
The information contained in this message is confidential and intended only for the individual named above. If you are not the intended recipient,or responsible for delivering it to the intended recipient you are hereby notified that any dissemination, distribution, copying, or disclosure of this information is prohibited and may be unlawful. If you have received this communication in error, please notify us by telephone on 020 7942 2353. This message has been scanned for viruses by MessageLabs Email Security System www.messagelabs.com/email
______________________________________________________________________
This email has been scanned by the MessageLabs Email Security System.
For more information please visit http://www.messagelabs.com/email
______________________________________________________________________
|
