cfp.english.upenn.edu

This conference solicits contributions to our understanding of the perennial outlaw hero, and the traditions surrounding his stories, from as wide a variety of disciplinary and interdisciplinary perspectives as possible. The conference requests proposals that expand our knowledge of medieval and early modern historical studies, literary criticism, folklore, musicology and music practice, children’s literature, cultural studies, anthropology, film and media studies, performance art and oral recitations, art history, literary history and theory, and philosophy. While our historical understanding of Robin Hood inevitably depends on literary and archival records, even these cultural memories have been shaped by the media that contain them. This Seventh Biennial Conference will feature a series of events that highlight Robin Hood’s status as a creature of the media. These include the screening of a pristine 35mm tinted print, newly restored by MOMA and the George Eastman House, of Douglas Fairbanks in Robin Hood (1922). A live orchestra will play the score reconstructed by the renowned musicologist Gillian Anderson (Bologna), who will conduct. The earliest surviving film about the outlaw hero, Robin Hood (Éclair America, 1912) will also receive its East Coast premiere in a recently restored 35mm print. Singers and musicians from the Ohio Light Opera and the Eastman School of Music will perform a program of Robin Hood operettas, centered on Reginald de Koven’s Robin Hood (1891). There will also be a recital of early lute music by Grammy-Award winner Paul O’Dette, and a major exhibition of hundreds of rare and unusual books, illustrations, posters, and artifacts, including a cache of previously unseen production stills from the Fairbanks’ Robin Hood.
Plenary speakers are Professor Helen Phillips (Cardiff) and Ms. Gillian Anderson (Bologna). Other participants include Chris Chism (Rutgers), Steven Daigle (Ohio Light Opera / ESM), Alan Gaylord (Dartmouth), Richard Kaeuper (Rochester), Stephen Knight (Cardiff), Patrick Loughney (Library of Congress), and Thomas Ohlgren (Purdue). Conference dates for "Robin Hood: Media Creature": 22-25 October 2009. Send paper abstracts (limit 300 words) and panel proposals to Thomas Hahn at IARHS.Conference@gmail.com. All files should be composed in MS Word or compatible formats. The deadline for submissions is 15 June 2009.