This module explores urgent socio-political and aesthetic issues in contemporary theatre and performance through a focus on material and cultural conditions of production and reception. Drawing on London's rich performance resources but also looking globally, it examines what is urgent in contemporary theatre and performance and how theatre and performance scholarship can help us understand contemporary cultures and cultural debates. In weekly seminars informed by critical reading and preparation, you will explore a range of issues related to, for example, decolonisation, ethics, bodies, gender, sexuality, finance, spaces, institutions, labour, feelings, and spectatorship. You will consider issues of social power, representation, and social change. The module will respond to emerging issues and scholarship as it happens.