Abstract submission for IFTR 2019 has been extended until 14 January 2019

Please direct any questions you may have about the conference to iftr2019@163.com

The upcoming IFTR Conference will be held at the Shanghai Theatre Academy from 8 to 12 July, 2019, in Shanghai, China. We sincerely invite you to participate in the conference and exchange ideas on the theme Theatre, Performance, and Urbanism.

Urbanism is a population shift from rural to urban areas. To speak of urbanism is not only to speak of the development of cities but also about new ways of life. Urbanism plays a key role in a range of disciplines, including geography, sociology, economics, urban planning, and public health. The development of theatre is inseparable from the process of urbanization. The changing urban city affects theatrical and performance spaces, styles, contents, and audiences. Theatre plays an important role in the processes of development and nation-building, and it also participates in shaping the cultural image in urban areas.

The process of urbanization -- the rural-to-city path of migration and the growth of cities -- was a global trend in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries in the West, but in China, as a developing country, we are still experiencing this process and face a complex situation in the twenty-first century. This might be a similar situation for most developing countries in the world, and some developed countries may still be dealing with problematic consequences resulting from their own histories of urbanization.

Regarding urbanism as the background for the continuing development of theatre, we invite inquiry not only into the transformation and development of theatre from rural areas to the cities, but also into the challenging balance between the past and the present, intangible cultural heritage -- which includes most ancient and traditional theatres -- and contemporary theatre and performance.

In this regard, at this year’s IFTR conference we welcome papers that explore all aspects of theatre, performance, and urbanism. We especially welcome proposals that focus on the relationship between the development of theatre and the retention of performance traditions. Other possible topics include, but are not limited to: 

• Theatre, Performance, and Popular Culture
• Theatre, Performance, and Populations
• Theatre, Performance, and Cultural Policy
• Cross-Cultural and Intercultural Theatre and Performance
• Theatre, Performance, and New Media
• Theatre, Performance, and Urban Space
• The Diversity of Theatre in Modern Cities
• Theatre, Performance, and Intangible Cultural Heritage
• Urban Areas and Local Theatre
• Traditional and Avant-garde Theatre and Performance
• Post-dramatic Theatre, Urban Performance, and New Citizens
• Tourism, Theatre, and Performance
• Demolish or Rebuild: Historic Theatres in Modern Cities 

 If you would like to participate at the IFTR 2019, you can submit your abstract to one of the following program sections

- General Panels

- New Scholars’ Forum 

- Working Groups 

All abstract submissions are made through the Cambridge Core website: https://www.cambridge.org/core/membership/iftr/abstract-submission

However, in order to make a submission you will need to become a member of IFTR, first.

 Deadline for abstract submission: 14 January, 2019.

If you have already have a Cambridge Core account, you can download instructions on how to join IFTR here. 

If you do not have a Cambridge Core account, you can download instructions on how to join IFTR here.