Artists And Academics Meet At A LEAP Dance Festival's Liverpool Conference

The role of dance and performance in democratic discussions and forging connections through culture will form the heart of a two-day conference in Liverpool this autumn.

MDI and Liverpool Hope University are staging Our Dance Democracy: Dance, Performance, Culture and Civic Democracy as part of the 2018 LEAP Dance Festival.

The conference will be held at Liverpool Hope's Creative Campus in Everton on November 2-3.

Keynote speakers are choreographer, director and performer Rosemary Lee; Charlotte Vincent, founder of Vincent Dance Theatre and described as 'one of the most important feminist artists working in Britain today'; Professor Victor Merriman, Head of Research at the Department of Performing Arts at Edge Hill University and leads the Performance of Civic research group; and Dr Fiona Bannon, Chair of DanceHE and founding member of Architects of the Invisible, a performance collective that explores experimental choreography and social interaction.

For many years, artists and academics have borne witness to political events, social customs and the agenda of the day. They have pondered, questioned and revealed us back to ourselves. Whether they are always aware of it or not, the artist and academic in society are political.

Our Dance Democracy will focus on dance and performance as the main discipline, the interrogation of a socially engaged practice to confront the topic of democracy and civic responsibility through the arts and academia. This event will also explore the question of what it means to be democratic in 21st Century and in an ever-changing world, for both artists, academics and the wider community.

The conference supports the theme of LEAP Dance Festival 2018 which celebrates female artists and the power for transformation in contributing to dance practice and its engagement in communities.

Organisers are also inviting contributions by scholars, artists, choreographers, and producers who would like to present arguments on topics including, but not limited to: Dance, Performance and Community; Transformational Power of Dance; Performance as Civic Pride and Responsibility; Senses of Place and Belonging; City, Sites and Culture; Intergenerational Dance; Women and Children.

Those interested should send abstracts (200 word max) to the conference organisers: Karen Gallagher at Karen@mdi.org.uk and Dr Sarah Black at blacks@hope.ac.uk by Tuesday 4 September. Include name, contact information, affiliation, a brief biography (100 words max), and list of keywords (5 max). Use the subject heading 'Our Dance Democracy' in email.

MDI Artistic Director Karen Gallagher MBE said: "MDI is really excited to be partnering with Liverpool Hope University on what is our first major academic dance conference. Dr Sarah Black and I have created what we think is an extraordinary chance for artists and academics to come together and explore the transformational impacts that culture, especially dance culture, has on our society; through exploring our civic responsibility in creating work, exploring themes that come from that, and how it is evaluated and reported. It will be a great opportunity to bring the study and practice of the art form together."

LEAP Dance Festival takes place from November 2-12 at venues across Liverpool Hope's Creative Campus.

The theme for this year's festival is suffrage in a tribute to the suffragette movement celebrating 100 years since some women were first given the right to vote.

In celebration of this, the festival will feature female protagonists in each of the dance performances, all of which are new shows to Liverpool.

LEAP 2018 is part of the #Liverpool2018 celebrations which mark 10 years since the city received the prestigious 2008 Capital of Culture title. Each production in the festival will be making its Liverpool debut meaning this the perfect opportunity for audiences to experience never before seen performances.

To find out more about the conference and book a place, visit https://store.hope.ac.uk/conferences-and-events/faculty-of-arts-and-humanities/our-dance-democracy/our-dance-democracy-dance-performance-culture-and-civic-democracy

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