Out of Time: Temporal Slippage in Performance and the Visual Arts

Performance has a unique and dynamic relationship with time, necessarily ephemeral yet endlessly repeating. At first glance it appears to be unavoidably time-bound, dependent on bodies moving in time and space; however, the theatre is also capable of conjuring moments of temporal slippage and resistance. Whilst performance can be said to represent a state of true presence, impossible to document or freeze in time, other theorisations have focused on the ways in which performance reconstructs, re-embodies and resurrects the past.

Out of Time is a one-day interdisciplinary conference bringing together PGRs, early career researchers and established academics to explore temporality in the performing and visual arts. The conference will interrogate notions of presence, recognising that the performative present is haunted by traces of the past and hints of the future. We aim to explore the risks and rewards of the temporal play inherent to performance.

We warmly invite proposals (no more than 250 words) for 15-minute provocations, presentations or performances on any aspect of performance and time. Given performance’s necessary and consciously shaped temporalities, we are actively encouraging contributions that engage practically with their duration, with the aim of fostering methodological diversity.

Themes might include but are not limited to:

• (How) is it possible to archive the live?
• What are the ethical implications of attempting to give voice to the past in performance? How does memoir negotiate time?
• What happens when identities are performed outside of chrononormativity?
• What is the connection between time and capital?
• How can we play with clock time to make our own (a)temporal schemes of resistance?
• What does it mean to be ‘of’ time rather than ‘in’ or ‘on’ time?
• How might performance help us to think about the future?

‘Out of Time’ aims to foster a supportive discursive environment that promotes further collaboration and dialogue within the PGR and PGT community, and represents an excellent opportunity for early career researchers to gain valuable experience of presenting. ?Confirmed speakers include Professor of Contemporary Theatre & Performance Stephen Bottoms and theatre historian Professor Maggie Gale, who will be delivering papers on the plenary panel.

Please send your proposal (250 words), its title, and a short biography (100 words) to outoftimeconferencegmail.com by 18th March, 2016. Successful applicants will be notified by Friday, 1st April.