IMPORTANT NOTE: Proposals are closed; This page is available only as a guide for selected presenters.

Oral History and Performance Conference

Dates: March 13, 14 and 15, 2008
Location: Columbia University, New York City
Sponsors: Oral History in the Mid-Atlantic Region [OHMAR], Columbia University Oral History Research Office, New York Public Library for the Performing Arts

Introduction

As one of the great performing arts meccas of the world and a vital center for community-based and grassroots oral history research, New York City is an ideal place to explore the intersection of oral history and performance. The conference program committee hopes to bring together performing artists, oral historians, and other practitioners in a multi-disciplinary conference that will highlight the diversity of work centered around oral history and performance.

Where oral history and performance meet lies an important emerging field of endeavor. The arena is rich cross-disciplinary resonances across anthropology, sociology, history, performance studies, art history, public history, arts-based education, community development and many other areas. Performances, in a variety of genres, are a powerful means for increasing access to oral history sources and engaging broad audiences with diverse historical materials.

The program committee welcomes proposals using multiple approaches, media, and theoretical frameworks, falling at various points along the wide continuum of paper and performance. Proposals may therefore include papers, performative papers, and performance events, as well as panels of mixed events. Those dealing with the methodological and theoretical issues around transforming interviews into performances are welcome. This conference should also provide an opportunity to examine how stories are performed, in interviews and in other contexts. Please note that oral history must be a significant source for all work submitted.For a detailed definition of these terms, see the proposal genres section below.

Possible topics thus include, but are not limited to:

• Performances that use oral history as an educational or organizing tool, in a variety of settings
• Oral history projects that document and explore the history of performers and performances
• Performances based on oral histories.
• The oral history interview as performance

PROPOSAL GENRES

• A paper is primarily a text presentation which may include live or digital performance examples, probably solo. Papers should be limited to 20 minute presentations as part of a 3 person panel totaling 1.5 hours.

• A performative paper entails giving a text presentation performatively, i.e,. someone writes a short play script that is their argument, or they sing/dance their argument somehow. Performative papers or performance events may be allotted a 30 minute presentation slot within a maximum 3 person-panel, totaling 2 hours total.

• A performance event is primarily focused on performance and introduces the theoretical/methodological/thematic issues briefly and may comment after; but the main event is performance and may have a larger number of participants and some technical requirements. These will be programmed on a case by case basis. Thirty minutes is the maximum time limit for such events.

Single proposals of any sort may be programmed with other kinds of events if the programming committee deems them thematically related. Please note: any single or multiple combination of the above genres of performance is appropriate for a single proposal.

Panel proposals may also offer a 3 person panel event of any mix of possible presentation formats. Please be specific in your proposal as to how themes are related among your three event panel. Indicate specifically if you want a 1.5 or 2 hours panel slot.

TECHNICAL SUPPORT

Please indicate your need for technical support (audio/visual/digital). Be specific so we can best evaluate supporting your full work and also program it for the specific spaces we have available. Please note that there will be limitations in terms of having all technical equipment available in all rooms, and also limited performance space (one black box theater with a basic lighting and sound and a 15’ by 30’ stage). Other rooms for events may have limited floor space or audio/visual capacity. We suggest that you limit your technical requirements to what is necessary and consider bringing technical support with you for complex needs.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Proposals are closed; This page is available only as a guide for selected presenters.