The sixth Performing the World conference will be held in New York City from Thursday, September 30 through Sunday, October 3, 2010. The theme of this year’s conference is: “Can Performance Change the World?”

With this theme, we ask performance activists and scholars to reflect on and address the political aspects of their performance work; at the same time, we invite social change activists to reflect on and address the performance aspects of their political activities. We are looking for proposals —for panels, workshops, performances, demonstrations, installations, etc. — that address this overarching question.

The sponsors of Performing the World — the East Side Institute for Group and Short Term Psychotherapy and the All Stars Project, Inc. — are based in New York City. For decades, both organizations have worked to create a performance-oriented culture and community, in conscious and direct relationship to progressive social change. Our activities involve all neighborhoods and social strata in New York City, and have created an international network of connections.

We envision Performing the World 2010 as a three-day “performance of conversation” with people from all over the world — scholars and researchers; teachers, therapists, social workers and community organizers; doctors and other health workers; theatre and other performance artists; union activists and business leaders; economists and political activists — on the subject of performance and the transformation of the individual, the community, and the world.

The question “Can Performance Change the World?” suggests many themes and topics. Here are a few:

Does performance contribute to people seeing the world in new ways?
Play, performance and learning in and outside of school
Community, therapy and community therapy
Playing at work and working at play
New health care performances for connecting mind and body
Therapy, performance and emotional growth
How is the economy performing?
What does performing on stage have to do with performing off-stage?
Group creativity and social change
Performance, activism and revolution