Solidarity in Performance: considering activist processes in neoliberal times

In what ways can performance practice and its related discourse contribute to working towards social equality in neoliberal contexts? The article addresses this question through a close examination of the notion of solidarity in terms of considering what it might mean to ‘feel and act for and with others in mind’. In addressing the processual aspect of activist practice and exploring how solidarity can be enacted in and through performance, it brings together a range of voices from UK-based artists and activists that gathered as part of the ‘Performing Solidarity’ (2019–2020) series in which approaches to enacting solidarity were shared. Drawing on a posthumanist framework, the article discusses the notions of inter-connection and interdependency within a broader consideration of the ways in which alternative subject formations and relations among people can be explored, newly formed and rehearsed in and through performance practice. It thereby offers a renewed validation of the discipline of performance in view of its sociopolitical role.

This is an Accepted Manuscript version of the following article, accepted for publication in Performance Research. Citation: Stefanie Gabriele Sachsenmaier (2022) Solidarity in Performance, Performance Research, 27:5, 4-15, DOI: 10.1080/13528165.2022.2160913. It is deposited under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits non-commercial re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.”