The End(s) of Empire: Place, Politics, Performance

CFA @ IADT will host The End(s) of Empire: Place, Politics, Performance on 5 and 6 June 2025. This is the annual conference of the voluntary organization, Irish Society for Theatre Research, but will be interdisciplinary in scope. It connects communities of practice, bringing together Irish and international artists and researchers to consider the following questions: What are, or have been, the roles of creative and performing arts in negotiating the end(s) of empire or their continuation?

How can creative practice, as well as research for and about such practice, illuminate our understanding of place and politics as they relate to empire? What decolonial strategies have been employed or envisioned by artists and cultural organizations, and to what end? What roles do performing and creative arts play in perpetuating or exposing embedded structures that sustain racial, class and related privileges? To explore these questions, the conference features panels including practice presentations and talks on such topics as mediatization, government policy and the arts, adaptation, art and justice, and (re)imagining place. Each panel will be followed by plenary discussion.

Panels will variously consider ideas central to CFA’s values, such as creativity and imagination as agents for positive change, embedding sustainability in creative practice, encouraging divergence and risk-taking, and instilling confidence and leadership as well as facilitating autonomy and access to learners (by encouraging equal participation of scholars and artists of all career stages). New Moon, a film installation made by refugee artists living in Ireland, will be ongoing throughout the event. With a wine reception and lunch breaks providing additional professional networking opportunities, this event shares knowledge and expertise for the enhancement of practitioners, educators and the cultural & creative sector as a whole.

The keynote speakers for this event are: Dr Elaine Sisson, Senior Lecturer in Visual Culture and Academic Lead for the Creative Futures Academy, Institute of Art, Design and Technology, Dún Laoghaire; and Dr Siân Adiseshiah, Professor of Literature, Politics and Performance and Head of English, Loughborough University.

Dr Elaine Sisson, Senior Lecturer in Visual Culture and Academic Lead for the Creative Futures Academy, Institute of Art, Design and Technology, Dún Laoghaire

Dr Siân Adiseshiah, Professor of Literature, Politics and Performance and Head of English, Loughborough University.