In this talk, Susan and Stefanie reflect on Rosemary Butcher the artist and person, tracing memories of Rosemary organising an exhibition of her archive for Tanz Im August festival, artistic collaborations, creative research, her strictness in the making process and her smile. Speaking as a performance theorist, Susan notes, one can’t ‘think her work without thinking Rosemary.’
Susan Melrose is Emeritus Professor in the Department of Performing Arts, Middlesex University, UK. She completed her Maitrise es Lettres at the Universite de Paris III in 1980 and Doctorat at the Sorbonne Nlle Paris in 1984. She has lived and taught in Tunisia, Turkey, France, Australia and the UK. Her principal area of research interest is creative decision-making in the performing arts, performance-making expertise, and the issue of the ‘knowledge-status’ of expert performance-making practices in the university.
Stefanie Sachsenmaier is Associate Professor in Contemporary Performance and Programme Leader of BA Theatre Performance and Production. Her research interests and publications relate to the processual in creative practice. Over ten years she worked closely with British choreographer Rosemary Butcher and has published a series of writings in this context. Further research areas include collaborative practices in performance-making and the ways that performance practices extend into the socio-political context. She forms part of the editorial team for Interventions (Contemporary Theatre Review) and sits on the editorial advisory board of Choreographic Practices Journal. At the Faculty of Creative Arts and Industries/Mdx University she co-facilitates the Politicised Artistic Practices Research Initiative. With a background as a performer, she is also an experienced tai chi practitioner and instructor.
