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In Comes I explores performance and land, biography and locality, memory and place. The book reflects on performances past and present, taking the form of a series of excursions into the agricultural landscape of eastern England, and drawing from archaeology, geomorphology, folklore, and local and family history.
Mike Pearson, a leading theatre artist and solo-performer, returns to the landscape of his childhood – off the beaten track in Lincolnshire – and uses it as a mnemonic to reflect widely upon performance theory and practice. Rather than focusing on author, period and genre as is conventional in the study of drama, the book takes region as its optic, acknowledging the affective ties between people and place.
Offering new approaches to the study of performance, he integrates intensely personal narrative with analytical reflection, juxtaposing anecdote with theoretical insight, dramatic text with interdisciplinary perception. The performances, ranging from folk drama to contemporary site-specific work, are seen in the light of their relationship to their cultural and physical environment.
In Comes I is a brilliant and timely book, and one that will expand the field of Theatre and Performance Studies by introducing new concepts, functions, forms, and vocabularies. ....In Comes I is beautifully designed: the images, layout, and font transform the book into a kind of page-bound installation, a landscape to hold and move through. It feels good to look at and to touch.
Mike Pearson was Professor of Performance Studies at University of Wales, Aberystwyth. He was a leading theatre artist, having worked both as director and performer in various theatre companies in Wales; he created performances as a solo artist with German saxophonist Peter Brõtzmann, and with artist/designer Mike Brookes. He was co-author of Theatre/Archaeology (Routledge 2001).
List of Illustrations
Preface
Map of the book
Introduction
VILLAGE:
Preamble
Performance: Bubbling Tom
Excursion: Hibaldstow
Project: White House Yard
NEIGHBOURHOOD:
Preamble
Performance: Hibaldstow Plough Play
Excursion: Hibaldstow, Redbourne and Kirton in Lindsey
Project: Gainsthorpe
REGION:
Preamble
Performance: Haxey Hood
Excursion: North Lincolnshire
Project: Ousefleet
Afterword: Performance and landscape
Bibliography
Index