This conference proposes new considerations of realism on stage through studies in East Asian performing arts. Since its association with 19th-century innovations in European and American drama, theatrical realism has largely remained limited to Euro-American definitions. We explore conventions of realism in culturally-specific locations and times across East Asia, articulating alternative histories of realism that extend from the premodern into the present. Through our individual inquiries, we aim to broaden the term’s analytic power and shed collective light on the diversity and versatility of this important representational mode. The conference will end with a play reading performed by LAUNCH PAD, UCSB. Open to the public. REGISTRATION REQUIRED: http://www.realismseastasia.com/
  • Thursday, October 1, 2PM to 7:30PM
  • Friday, October 2, 2PM to 7PM
  • Saturday, October 3, 2PM to 7PM
Sponsored by the Interdisciplinary Humanities Center, UCSB Departments of Theater and Dance, East Asian Languages and Cultural Studies, History, Comparative Literature, Art and Architecture, Carsey-Wolf Center, East Asia Center, College of Letters and Science, and Abdulhamit Arvas