170233 UE Übung "Inszenierte Räume" (2022S)

The commercialization of non-curated performing arts festivals in Edinburgh, Adelaide and Avignon reveals three worrying developments: (1) The economic impact of arts events is measured in quantifiable parameters, while cultural and social benefits are neglected. Festival organizations publish annual reports promoting visitor numbers and ticket sales instead of focusing on intangible factors like the wellbeing of artists. (2) The dominance of market trends outweighs aesthetic considerations, which represses the counterculture heritage of fringe festivals and entails a standardization of theatre productions. Artists are reluctant to take creative risks, as this often entails financial losses. Instead of staging experimental and subversive plays, mainstream entertainment and stand-up comedies are chosen as success guarantee. (3) Caught between the desire to create art and the necessity of running a business, artists adapt a new role as ‘artrepreneurs’, which requires entrepreneurial skills in addition to aesthetic talents. While non-curated festivals are generally perceived as the self-empowerment of artists, economic insecurities oftentimes lead to their self-exploitation. The presumed freedom on fringe festivals gives rise to structural inequalities, weakened social ties and a changed value system.

This course examines to what extent the non-curated fringe festivals in Edinburgh, Adelaide and Avignon operate as competitive performing arts markets today and constitute a crucial step on the career ladder of independent artists. By tracing the historical development and cultural significance of these three festivals, we explore the concept of “fringe” in the past and now. Do fringe festivals still offer in-between spaces to subvert the status quo and to present ludic alternatives to today’s neoliberal meritocracy?

# GOALS #
As a result of participating in this course, students will be able to critically examine the impact of a neoliberal economic policy on the independent performing arts sector, by comparing three different non-curated fringe festivals.

# METHODS #
This course is conceptualized on a problem-based learning strategy, i.e. students are guided by means of questionnaires and worksheets to actively work out solutions themselves. This approach helps students to develop analytical and problem-solving skills. In-class activities, e.g. think-pair-share, allow students to exchange ideas and knowledge with their colleagues and to improve their communication and teamworking skills.