DHUM 25A44 - Introduction to Performance Studies: Performing Public Space

This course introduces students to the concept of performance understood as an embodied practice. It explores everyday performances, such as social encounters and institutional practices; civic performances, including speech acts and grassroots movements; and artistic performances, such as theatre, dance, and music. Students will examine how these diverse forms of performance contribute to the constitution of public space by mobilising bodies, affects, gestures, voices, movements, and collective forms of appearance. By engaging with performance theory, political theory, and art studies, the course equips students with analytical and methodological tools for investigating the public significance of performance. Through a combination of lectures, close readings, and discussions, students will analyse selected performances both individually and in groups. Reflective discussions will foster active engagement and participation. Students will learn to assess how performances are constructed, how they shape public space, and how they generate political, cultural, and social effects.

The course opens with an introduction to the core principles of Performance Studies. Therefore, no prior familiarity with the field as a distinct academic discipline is necessary.

The course is organised as a lecture/discussion seminar combining lecturer-led teaching, student collaboration, and collective debate. It begins with an extended introductory lecture presenting the overall structure of the course, its main topics, and its key concepts. In the following sessions, I will briefly summarise and clarify the main points from the previous week, address possible misunderstandings, and connect them to the topic of the new session. Each week, one student group will present the assigned reading in the form of a short lecture, while another group will prepare questions based on the same text and moderate the discussion. All students are expected to participate actively in class discussions. Throughout the course, students will also analyse selected examples of performance, including artistic, civic, and everyday practices, and apply the concepts developed in the readings and lectures. The course concludes with an individual final paper in which students analyse a performance / performances of their choice.

• Class attendance and participation in discussions 10%

Active presence in class and regular contribution to group discussions and debates.

• Assigned group presentation (max. 20 minutes) 30%

Collaborative presentation of an assigned reading, including clear articulation of key arguments and theoretical relevance to the course themes.

• Debate preparation and participation 10%

Each student prepares individually written questions (up to 3) based on the weekly reading. These questions contribute to a group-moderated debate, encouraging analytical thinking and collective engagement.

• Final individual paper (max. 5 pages) 50%

A critical analysis of a selected performance / performances, demonstrating the student's understanding of key course concepts, ability to apply theoretical tools, and methodological precision.