Performance and Public Space

DRAM31292 Performance and Public Space 10 Semester 2 Undergraduate Level 3 David Calder Unit coordinator Drama 1 FHEQ level (Framework for Higher Education Qualifications) ' Last part of a Bachelors ' European Credit Transfer & Accumulation System Rating : 5.0 How and why do theatre and performance artists work in public spaces? How does their work—and the critical debate surrounding it—engage with the politics and ethics of public space? How might publics and their spaces be performed?Starting from the premise that public space is neither neutral nor universal but rather constituted by debates over ownership and access, we will explore how performance intervenes in the imagination and construction of publics and their spaces. We will take up public-space performance’s invitation to interrogate the relationships between performers and spectators, art and everyday life, and aesthetic and political forms of participation. We will conclude by considering ongoing efforts by theatres to turn their buildings into public spaces (or to incorporate public-space work into their programming) and to participate in the wider public sphere. The module will include a writing workshop to help students develop their skills in critical and persuasive writing for both academic and non-academic audiences and make their own contributions to public discourse.  How and why do theatre and performance artists work in public spaces? How does their work—and the critical debate surrounding it—engage with the politics and ethics of public space? How might publics and their spaces be performed?Starting from the premise that public space is neither neutral nor universal but rather constituted by debates over ownership and access, we will explore how performance intervenes in the imagination and construction of publics and their spaces. We will take up public-space performance’s invitation to interrogate the relationships between performers and spectators, art and everyday life, and aesthetic and political forms of participation. We will conclude by considering ongoing efforts by theatres to turn their buildings into public spaces (or to incorporate public-space work into their programming) and to participate in the wider public sphere. The module will include a writing workshop to help students develop their skills in critical and persuasive writing for both academic and non-academic audiences and make their own contributions to public discourse.  The unit aims to:<ul><li>Engage students in the analysis of contemporary performance in public space in its social, cultural, political, and spatial contexts</li><li>Encourage critical thinking and stimulate respectful debate about the role of theatre and performance in public spaces and public life</li><li>Introduce students to key theories of public space and the public sphere as they relate to theatre and performance</li></ul> <ul><li>Performances in Public Space</li><li>Performances of Public Space</li><li>Performance Spaces as Public Spaces</li></ul>The module will include a writing workshop to help students craft the position paper.  The intended learning outcomes support the programme and University goals of fostering critical thinking, creative problem-solving, and the clear expression of ideas. The formative and summative assessments are designed to empower students to participate in the theatrical public sphere through well-written criticism and argument based on debates currently shaping the professional sector. Graduates entering the cultural and creative industries must be able to clearly articulate the value of these fields to public life.  Understand and engage with key theories of public space and the public sphere as they pertain to theatre and performance studiesUnderstand how theatres are re-imagining their role in public life and critically evaluate different approaches  Make and support an argument based on careful evaluation of evidence and critical engagement with possible counter-arguments   Write a persuasive and well-reasoned argument for an informed public of both academics and non-academics  Critically evaluate arguments and critically engage with current debates in the field of performance and public space  100 notional hours of learning, including:- 18 in-person contact hours (6 weeks of 3-hour seminars/workshops)- 36 hours of independent seminar/workshop preparation (6 hours/week of required readings and viewings, across 6 weeks)- 46 hours of independent assessment preparation and further studyStudents will access required readings and viewings via the VLE.   2 Written assignment (inc essay) 100% 6 Project output (not diss/n) 0.01% <figure class="table" style="width:650px;"><table style="border-style:solid;"><tbody><tr><td>Assessment Task</td><td>Formative or Summative</td><td>Weighting</td></tr><tr><td>Position paper introduction and plan </td><td>Formative</td><td>0%</td></tr><tr><td>Position Paper</td><td>Summative</td><td>100%</td></tr></tbody></table></figure> <figure class="table" style="width:650px;"><table style="border-style:solid;"><tbody><tr><td style="background-color:hsl(0, 0%, 90%);border-style:solid;">Assessment Task</td><td style="background-color:hsl(0, 0%, 90%);border-style:solid;">Feedback Method</td></tr><tr><td style="border-style:solid;">Position paper introduction and plan </td><td style="border-style:solid;">In-class peer and staff feedback during writing workshop </td></tr><tr><td style="border-style:solid;">Position Paper</td><td style="border-style:solid;">Written feedback via TurnItIn within 15 working days </td></tr></tbody></table></figure> N Balme, Christopher. The Theatrical Public Sphere. Cambridge University Press, 2014.Butler, Judith. Notes toward a performative theory of assembly. Harvard University Press, 2015.Ferdman, Bertie. Off Sites: Contemporary Performance Beyond Site-Specific. Southern Illinois University Press, 2018.  Groot Nibbelink, Liesbeth. Nomadic Theatre: Mobilizing Theory and Practice on the European Stage. Bloomsbury Methuen, 2020. Levin, Laura. Performing Ground: Space, Camouflage, and the Art of Blending In. Palgrave Macmillan, 2014. Wilkie, Fiona. Performance, Transport, and Mobility: Making Passage. Palgrave Macmillan, 2014.  Seminars 18 82