ARTH 202
Theories of Performance and Performativity Fall 2024
Division I

Performance Studies is an interdisciplinary field that focuses on the importance of the body and embodied practices in culture and in everyday life. In this course, we will learn the fundamental terms and theories in the field, and engage seminal artworks in the genre of performance art. Together, we will study artistic genealogies, analyze specific contemporary artworks, and center performance as a mode of analysis to engage the themes of identity, embodiment, self/other, memory, temporality, and systems of power. We will ask: What does performance do? How is performance art distinct from other creative modes of expression? What are the social, cultural, and political implications of using the body as material? This course will explore performance as an theoretical tool to understand everyday life and embodied practices, and as a creative mode of expression, critique, and world-building. Our readings will draw from feminist and queer theory, critical race theory, and disability studies, while centering various key strategies from contemporary performance art practices, including drag, camp, endurance-based works, re-enactment, performing for the camera, and collaboration. Class sessions will privilege group discussion.