Announcing the 2024 Curran Symposium: "Performing Politics"
As we approach the end of a full year—packed with numerous events for the bicentennial of Lord Byron's death—the Keats-Shelley Association of America and Byron Society of America are thrilled to announce the 2024 Curran Symposium: "Performing Politics." This exciting event promises to bridge the gap between Byron's era and our own, exploring how the political theatrics of the Romantic period resonate with our turbulent times in 2024.
Event Details
The symposium, while only lasting one day, will also function as a two-day affair, combining theatrical performance with academic discourse:
October 24, 2024: A special production of Byron's Sardanapalus at Red Bull Theater, New York City
October 25, 2024: A full-day symposium at NYU's Palladium Hall, followed by an evening reception
Symposium Focus
"Performing Politics" will engage with some of the most pressing public issues in the lives of Byron and his contemporaries that carry through to our own era. We'll examine how conflicts continue to rage "dubiously and fiercely," and consider how art reacts to and reimagines acts of theatrics and turmoil (Sardanapalus, Act III.i.198).
Key questions we'll explore include:
How might acts or performances help us imagine a new time and place?
What are our stories of political transformation?
What does the act of going public—of sharing these stories—activate for us as citizens, scholars, and artists?
Special Features
The symposium will feature invited speakers addressing a diverse range of performances and politics in the work of Byron, his Romantic contemporaries, and beyond. Jerome McGann will be giving the Keynote address for a day that is a historical occasion on many levels.
Just before the evening reception, we'll showcase Uncloseting Byron—a public art project that takes a creative, experimental approach to closet drama. This digital presentation will feature short mixed-media closet dramas inspired by Byron's works, shared via social media. We will also be sharing updates on our Commonplacing Outreach Project, and we warmly invite you to participate in K-SAA’s 2023-2025 public outreach initiative!
Organizers
This event is brought to you by a team of dedicated scholars:
Elizabeth Effinger, University of New Brunswick
Robin Hammerman, Stevens Institute of Technology
Kaila Rose, Director of Communications for the K-SAA & The International Association of Byron Societies
Join Us!
Whether you're a Byron enthusiast, a scholar of Romantic literature, or simply interested in the intersection of politics and art, this symposium offers a unique opportunity to engage with these timely themes.
More details can be found here, and registration can be achieved by simply filling out this form.
Save the dates and prepare to join us for this exciting exploration of Byron's legacy and its relevance to our contemporary world.
Stay tuned for more information, and we look forward to seeing you in October 2024!
