Queerer Lineages of Consent-Based Performance

Abstract: This Note from the Field is an adaptation of an American Society for Theatre Research (ASTR) Field Conversation held October 28, 2024, when Joy Brooke Fairfield, Raja Benz, and Heath Pennington shared insights on the queerer genealogies of contemporary consent practices for performance and discussed the implications of these histories in higher education and actor training. All three are intimacy professionals, teachers, and researchers, and their experiences as queer and gender expansive people weave into their critical engagements with consent and staged sexuality. The coauthors’ connections and commitments to sexually stigmatized communities drive their theorizing about the evolution of the staged intimacy field.