Cirrus@Austlit

'This article argues that when actors and directors use an 'affect-first' approach to performance, they are able to build an alternative semiotic that allows distinctly feminine/ist meaning to be created in the rehearsal room and shared in performance. This feminine/ist strategy for meaning- creation requires makers to feel first and think second, thus problematising the patriarchal Cartesian hierarchies of mind/body, and opening a space for affect and the body to be centralised in the creation of on-stage meaning. Using Fraught Outfit's 2012-13 production of 'Persona' as a case study, I contend that working at the intersections of feminist theatre theory, affect theory and 'ecriture feminine' allows feminine/ist theatre-makers to signify a broader and deeper range of meaning in and with the female body than otherwise possible with an approach that prioritises traditional theatre semiotics.'  (Publication abstract)