Call for Papers: The Politics of Practice

CALL FOR PAPERS

The Politics of Practice

An International Interdisciplinary Colloquium for Postgraduate Students

17-18 February 2012

Goldsmiths, University of London

The social nature of various professional practices is often submerged as normal behaviour. Recognising this phenomenon, Pierre Bourdieu argues for the necessity of a transparent and fully contextualized understanding of the ways in which cultural producers, practices and products are socially constituted and, reciprocally, shape their societies. How might group or individual practice, within and across fields, be analysed and examined as a social process?

This call for papers invites postgraduate students from all disciplines to examine how practices can be understood within the context of their social, cultural and political ramifications. The relationship between practice and social process can refer, but is not limited to: the effects of practice on the understanding and the trajectories of society; the exploration of self-disciplined practice (by a group or individual) as a political act of self-determination; the evolution of practice as a response to social, political and ecological crises; and the influence of geographical transformation, global hierarchies and political and economic interdependence on global and local practices.

The Politics of Practice is the sixth annual postgraduate colloquium organised by the Sociology of Theatre and Performance Research Group (STPRG) at Goldsmiths, University of London, under the direction of Professor Maria Shevtsova. This international event will draw on the issues of process and transmission examined in previous colloquia, including Appropriating Space (2008), Bodies and Socio-Histories (2010) and NOW, Legacies and Amnesia (2011). The Politics of Practice will provide an opportunity for postgraduates to engage with their peers across disciplines in a challenging and supportive environment. In addition to showcasing their own research, delegates will participate in roundtable discussions and panel sessions over the course of the two-day conference. The STPRG is committed to facilitating opportunities for postgraduates across the globe to meet, network, and exchange ideas in a truly interdisciplinary context.

We warmly welcome submissions from postgraduate research students for individual papers or practice-based presentations that do not exceed 15 minutes. Please submit your name, department, university, conference paper title and 250-word abstract to stpr.group@gmail.com. The colloquium will also include a programme of evening performances; those interested in performing should contact the organisers directly for further information. 

 Deadline for applications is 1 December 2011.

Please don’t hesitate to contact us on stpr.group@gmail.com with any queries you may have. We look forward to hearing from you!

Philippa Burt, Scheherazaad Cooper and Rebecca McFadden

PhD Students in the Department of Theatre and Performance

Sociology of Theatre and Performance Research Group

Goldsmiths, University of London