This symposium brings together theatermakers and scholars to explore the relevance and viability of Restoration and eighteenth-century repertory for twenty-first-century stages. Through a series of scene workshops and roundtables, we will focus on the ways these plays represented and mediated politics, race and empire, and gender and sexuality. The symposium seeks to re-activate this archive of works in order to understand anew the far-reaching influences of this past and engage and challenge theater audiences of the present and future.
This program is supported by a University of Illinois at Chicago Award for Creative Activity.
Schedule
Day 1: Thursday, October 27
9:15-9:45: Welcome: Lisa A. Freeman, University of Illinois at Chicago
9:45-11:00: Roundtable I: R/18 Plays in the 21st Century
Moderator: Kristina Straub, Carnegie Mellon University
Speakers:
- Phillip Breen, Royal Shakespeare Company
- Miles Grier, Queen's College, CUNY
- Chelsea Phillips, Villanova University
- Kim Weild, Carnegie Mellon University
11:00-11:15: Break
11:15-12:45: Scene Workshop I: Scenes from George Etherege's The Man of Mode (1676)
Director: Allen Gilmore, Congo Square Theatre Company
12:45-1:30: Lunch
1:30-2:45: Roundtable II: R/18 Plays in the 21st Century
Moderator: Misty Anderson, University of Tennessee, Knoxville
Speakers:
- Marti Lyons, Remy Bumppo Theatre Company
- Joyce MacDonald, University of Kentucky
- Ericka Ratcliff, Congo Square Theatre Company
2:45-3:00: Break
3:00-4:30: Scene Work II: Scenes from Edward Young's The Revenge (1721)
Director: Allen Gilmore, Congo Square Theatre Company
4:30-5:00: Newberry Library Collections Overview
Jill Gage, Custodian of the John M. Wing Foundation on the History of Printing
5:00-6:00: Reception
Day 2: Friday, October 28
9:15-9:30: Welcome Back: Lisa A. Freeman
9:30-10:45: Roundtable III: R/18 Plays in the 21st Century
Moderator: Tracy C. Davis, Northwestern University
Speakers:
- Wendy Arons, Carnegie Mellon University
- Noémie Ndiaye, University of Chicago
- Derrick Sanders, The Juilliard School
- Nathan Winkelstein, Red Bull Theater
10:45-11:00: Break
11:00-12:30: Scene Work III: Scenes from George Lillo's The London Merchant (1731)
Director: Allen Gilmore, Congo Square Theatre Company
12:30-1:15: Lunch
1:15-2:45: Replay of All Three Scene Sets
2:45-3:00: Break
3:00-4:30: Final Thoughts/Open Discussion: Possibilities for an R/18 Future
Facilitators: Lisa A. Freeman and Daniel O'Quinn, University of Guelph
Registration Information
This program is free, but space is limited. Given the nature of this event, we can only accommodate a very
limited number of registrants. We will be in touch with you by 17 October 2022 to let you know whether we will be able to include you.