Rechercher CITT/ICTS

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Backstage Work and Academic Research

Educational Session

The goal of this presentation is to show how and why academic scholars do research about technical theatre and behind-the-scenes labour, and yo discuss academic research in a way that is appropriate for a general audience.

First, I will discuss how academics have researched backstage labour in the past, and how they research it today. Second, I will review some specific approaches to backstage research, such as technical developments, policy and standardization, and cultural discussions. Finally, I will discuss my own research and forthcoming book about touring sound technicians. I will show that research of this kind can: - share backstage experiences for people outside of the industry; - demonstrate importance of backstage work; - support and advocate for backstage workers; - show the limitations and risks of backstage work; - change how people think about live production; - and more broadly, change how consumers understand hidden labour I will have a question and answer period at the end of the session.

After attending this sessions attendees will be able to:

- identify and discuss the trends of past and present academic research about backstage work; - know what academic literature, archival resources, and other scholarly materials look like (and where to find them); - have an understanding of how and why the work of backstage technical professionals is valued by scholars

Presenter: Jacob Danson Faraday (he/him)

Jacob Danson Faraday is an ethnomusicologist at Edinburgh Napier University in Scotland. He worked as a touring sound technician and stagehand for many years before becoming a researcher. His research interests include live sound production, large-scale touring, and labour.