CREES

Brecht was not the only Western modernist to turn to Asian theater and thought for inspiration, but he was an especially astute observer of the cultural encounter with this "other," which had such a significant impact on his work. Conversely, Brecht's own theater and thought returned to inspire new forms of political and aesthetic experiments in many parts of Asia. With the dynamic, ongoing echoes of this mutual relationship as point of departure, the symposium will provide a forum to explore its multiple dimensions. This call for papers broadly understands "Asia" to refer to the geo-political spaces of a "pluralized Asia" as well as to the reach of Asian traditions into the cultures of Europe, Africa, and the Americas. The organizational committee, consisting of Eiichiro Hirata (Keio University, Tokyo), Hans-Thies Lehmann (Goethe University, Frankfurt), Marc Silberman (University of Wisconsin, Madison), Markus Wessendorf (University of Hawai'i at Ma-noa, Honolulu), and Erdmut Wizisla (Bertolt Brecht Archive, Berlin), seeks proposals for papers, posters, panels, and workshops in the following four areas:

I. Asia's Brecht
II. Brecht's Asia
III. Asia beyond Brecht
IV. Brecht beyond Asia
For further definition of the four areas, see http://manoa.hawaii.edu/brecht2010

Since the primary conference language will be English, English-language proposals will be preferred. However, presentations in German are also welcome..

Please submit proposals for 20-minute presentations (250-350 words), abstracts for the poster sessions (100-150 words), workshop descriptions (100-150 words), or suggestions for panels (with three participants) by July 1, 2009 to:
Dr. Markus Wessendorf
Dept. of Theatre and Dance
University of Hawai'i at Manoa
1770 East-West Road
Honolulu, HI 96822 USA
Email: wessendo@hawaii.edu
Fax: 001 808 956-4234

Submissions by email are preferred, but hard copy and fax will also be accepted. Presenters will be notified in late October 2009 about the committee's selection of proposals, posters, and panels. The organizational committee reserves the right to constitute the panels and alter proposed themes or groups. Symposium participants are expected to be, or become, members of the International Brecht Society. The regular registration fee for the symposium is $120 ($90 for students and retirees), if registered by February 2010, thereafter the conference fee increases to $150 / $120. All participants are required to register. A selection of symposium proceedings will be published in The Brecht Yearbook (volume 36 / 2011).

The IBS plans to organize a cultural program during the conference, including the first American production of Brecht's The Judith of Shimoda (at the University of Hawai'i at Manoa) and a guest performance of director Makoto Nakashima's Mother Courage and Her Children (by the Bird Theater Company from Japan). More information on the cultural program as well as other details of the symposium can be found on the conference website:

The IBS hopes to attract financing and sponsors to partially subsidize participants' travel. Please note, however, that participants will have to arrange their own flight reservations and hotel accommodations.