Special interest group:
Performance and Stardom

Convenors:  

• Samar Abdelrahman (University of Liverpool) 
• Sarah Thomas (University of Liverpool) 
• Eleonora Sammartino (University of Southampton)

Overview

While stardom has become a significant and well-established part of Film Studies, the field has expanded to consider areas beyond the initial focus on Hollywood stardom to examine new areas including performance, ageing, and European stardom, and into new media, including television. There is a diversity within the study of stardom and performance that this network of individuals represents through their already published works and future projects that this SIG would support through communication and exchanges for scholarship and teaching.


Although the SIG would broadly focus on stardom and performance, some specific areas that will be of concern are:

• interdisciplinary studies into stardom and performance, including theoretically-informed approaches to performance analysis and close readings of performance
• the relationship between screen industries and stardom
• how stars operate as celebrities
• stardom narratives
• stardom and fandom
• regional, national, and transnational stardom
• the impact of race, ethnicity, sexuality on stardom
• acting, performance, and identity
• stardom and performance in television

Reports on activities

Other

• Reinvigorating and Reinventing Stardom Symposium, 2 November 2019

Founding members

• Lucy Bolton (Queen Mary, University of London) 
• Tom Cantrell (University of York)
• Laura Crossley (University of Bournemouth) 
• Rajinder Dudrah (Birmingham City University)
• Lisa Duffy (Queen Mary, University of London)
• Kirsty Fairclough (Manchester Metropolitan University)
• David Forrest (University of Sheffield)
• Agata Frymus (University of York)
• Miguel Gaggiotti (University of Bristol) 
• Mark Gallagher (University of Nottingham)
• Elisabetta Girelli (University of St. Andrews)
• Sue Harris (Queen Mary, University of London) 
• Vicky Lowe (University of Manchester)
• Karen McNally (London Metropolitan University) 
• Donna Peberdy (Solent University)
• Michael Williams (University of Southampton) 
• Eleonora Sammartino (King’s College, London)
• Martin Shingler (University of Sunderland) 
• Susan Smith (University of Sutherland)
• Andrew Spicer (University of the West of England)
• Sarah Thomas (University of Liverpool)​