Performing Arts in Contemporary Asia | Tradition and Travel

[caption id="attachment_7639" align="alignright" width="300" caption=" Folk musicians in Southern Jiangsu, China"][/caption]

Call for papers for the 16th International CHIME Conference - Performing Arts in Contemporary Asia: Tradition and Travel, to be held in London July 6-9 2011.

Royal Holloway University of London, in partnership with CHIME (European Foundation for Chinese Music Research) and the APAF (Asian Performing Arts Forum) presents the 16th International CHIME Conference Performing Arts in Contemporary Asia: Tradition and Travel on 6 - 9 July, 2011, at Royal Holloway University of London (RHUL), Egham, Surrey (UK).

This conference aims to disseminate fresh research into the movement of traditional performers, their mediums and artefacts around the globe, with particular emphasis on contemporary Asia, and a sub-focus on China. A region constituting the world's most populous continent, Asia has historically been connected in terms of empire, trade and more recently, migrant workers. However, examinations of performances and tradition have tended to focus on local emplacement rather than physical and cultural mobility. In contrast, this conference targets questions of travel and traffic in global and local dynamic relation. Topics of study range from routes formed by itinerant performers to the funding and facilitation of cross-border exchanges initiated by contemporary companies and festivals. The conference will also consider cultural flows emerging in the wake of new developments such as communications empowerment, heritage management and detraditionalised practices.

In particular, debate will be initiated on how traditional performances in Asia are developed, inserted into, and travel within global, post colonial circuits that encompass issues of seasonality, feedback, contemporaneity and pan-Asian identities. Informal networks between individuals and grass-roots communities; formal political relations between states and organisations, and accompanying economic flows will be examined. These broader forces influence how performers engage with cultural difference and changing notions of traditionality.

The organisers invite abstracts of around 300 words for twenty-minute presentations on the conference theme. Proposers may also submit panel sessions of a maximum of 120 minutes (including discussion). In this case, an abstract of around 300 words should detail the focus of the panel as a whole, with abstracts of 100-200 words for each contribution. A number of poster sessions in the course of the conference will also be supported, enabling work in progress to be shared using video/image as well as other media. A brief description of the material and technical requirements should be submitted for this.

The deadline for submission of abstracts is April 5, 2011. An early acceptance policy will be implemented for those in need of conference confirmation for grant or visa applications.

See website for full details of the theme and how to submit your abstracts.

Further information on the Asian Performing Arts Forum website.