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“Here we come/ Dyma ni’n diwad”-
Traditional and contemporary folk performances in Britain’

A two-day symposium hosted by the Department of Theatre, Film and Television at the University of Wales Aberystwyth in collaboration with Aberystwyth Arts Centre

2 + 3 June, 2006

with: Jeremy Deller and Alan Kane (Folk Archive); Doc Rowe and other guests.

http://users.aber.ac.uk/hhp/

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Boggins and Burrymen, Paper Boys and Pace Eggers, Hodeners and Plough Stots… Wren-boys, Furry-dancers, Bottle-kickers, Cheese-rollers, Tar-barrel carriers…Mari Lwyd and Obby Oss and Straw Bear… These traditional figures of the British performative calendar have recently been joined by carnivalists, hen nighters, love paraders and street reclaimers as examples of what we may regard as present day “folk performance”.

In both rural and urban contexts, there exist customs, events and activities, energetic and engaging, enacted on particular dates and occasions, in the main by people who would probably not consider themselves artists. Some are long-term survivals, others of more recent origin; all demonstrate continuing localized creativity. They range in form from expository folk dramas to participatory games; they involve elements of disguise and misrule, humour and resistance.
Most have fallen under the academic scrutiny of folklore and regional studies; few have been regarded through the optic of performance studies.

To redress this balance, and at the commencement of a linked series of enquiries into the archiving of performance, the Performance Studies Research Group in UWA is organising a short symposium on concepts and manifestations of folk performance, traditional and contemporary; their documentation; and their influence upon contemporary artists.

This event coincides with the exhibition ‘Folk Archive – Contemporary Popular Art from the UK’ at Aberystwyth Arts Centre, curated by Turner Prize winner Jeremy Deller and Alan Kane. (27 May – 15 July 2006)

Deller and Kane’s enquiry into ‘what might constitute present day folk art’ will serve as an inspiration for an investigation of the following themes:

- the contemporaneity of so-called traditional practices
- the influence of folk art on contemporary performance
- artists and the appropriation of its motifs
- the collecting and archiving of ephemeral cultural practices

“…If art practice has changed in recent decades then what might be considered folk art has similarly changed, and we must take into account performance and action, video and installation.” (Deller & Kane, Folk Archive: Contemporary Popular Art from the UK, London: Book Works 2005)

PROGRAMME

On the evening of Friday 2 June, Deller and Kane will present the ‘Folk Archive’ and engage in public discussion of its themes and aims.
The timetable for Saturday 3 June is organised around illustrated lectures and extended in-depth conversations with practitioners and archivists of folk performance, working in both English and Welsh contexts. Confirmed guests include legendary collector Doc Rowe; Bernard Fishlock (Marshfield Mummers); and Mari Lwyd practitioners. In a concluding session, a number of performance artists discuss the significance of traditional practices for their work.

CALL FOR PAPERS

Two sessions of contributory papers are also planned. We are seeking 20-minute papers on any aspect of British everyday creativity and popular culture that is performative in nature. The papers should address one or more of our themes:

- the nature of everyday performative creativity
- the contemporaneity of so-called traditional practices
- the influence of folk art on contemporary performance
- artists and the appropriation of its motifs
- the collecting and archiving of ephemeral cultural practices

We welcome contributions from performance studies, theatre studies, folk studies, ethnology and ethnography, regional studies, Welsh studies, history, musicology, archive studies and related fields.

Please send proposals to:
Dr Heike Roms, Performance Studies, Dept Theatre, Film and Television Studies, University of Wales Aberystwyth SY23 3AJ, UK
phone: (+44) 1970 - 621911 (direct)
departmental secretariat: (+44) 1970 - 622828
fax: (+44) 1970 - 622831
hhp_at_aber.ac.uk

http://users.aber.ac.uk/hhp/

DEADLINE for paper proposals: 31 March 2006

You will be notified by 20 April if your paper has been accepted.

REGISTRATION FEE
Attendance at the symposium is FREE OF CHARGE.
Please secure your place by contacting Dr Heike Roms at the address above.
We are happy to assist with advice on local accommodation and travel arrangements.

Hosted by:
Mike Pearson, Professor of Performance Studies, University of Wales Aberystwyth
Dr Mikel Koven, Film Studies, University of Wales Aberystwyth
Dr Heike Roms, Performance Studies, University of Wales Aberystwyth

In collaboration with Aberystwyth Arts Centre (Exhibitions: Eve Ropek)

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Received on Thu Mar 02 2006 - 11:44:16 EST