ASTR 2016 TRANSformance program

News 3 November 2016

Helen Paris and Leslie Hill
Helen Paris and Leslie Hill

It was a pleasure to be asked by Jen Parker Starbuck and Josh Abrams to work on a performance program for ASTR 2016, the annual conference for the American Society for Theatre Research which took place in Minneapolis between 3–6 November 2016.

The call we sent out asked for performances that resonated with, responded to and playfully provoked the conference’s theme TRANS and which responded to the transitory nature of conferences and hotel spaces, inviting performances that move across, through, beyond, between people, places and states. Despite the challenge of no gallery, black box or theatre spaces, no lighting or set and working within the confines and constraints of a hotel conference setting we were thrilled to receive a rich and diverse range of works. Artists are exploring ideas of transgender, transfiguration, transgression, transition, transportation, translation, transformation, transplantation and much more besides. The performances are durational, one-to-one, flash, pop up, installation, lec-dem and invisible. Some last 17 hours some just a few moments.