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The Judy Project: A Critical and Historical Investigation of Women and Puppetry from the Eighteenth to the Twenty-First Century

Project description

A closer look at the female puppet figure

Puppetry is an ancient form of artistic expression, first appearing in the context of ceremonies and in religious customs. In terms of gender roles, the role of women has not been fully explored. The EU-funded JPEWP project will conduct the first transhistorical investigation of the (re)presentation of gender in the famous puppet show Punch and Judy, demonstrating how women have been placing themselves in significant and understudied ways. The project will shed light on how the female puppet figure reveals or conceals dominant ideology and anxiety about the female. It will also investigate how the female body is presented in a popular performance form, by whom and why.

Objective

The Judy Project: A Critical and Historical Investigation of Women and Puppetry from the Eighteenth to the Twenty-First Century (JPEWP) is the first transhistorical examination of the (re)presentation of gender and identity in Punch and Judy one of the most iconic English puppet traditions. Despite a growing interest in puppet theatre, scholarship does not typically delve into gender issues. The inclusion of women as practitioners and theoreticians, and critical analyses of female figures are scarce. My research, however, shows that women have been inserting themselves throughout its history in significant and under-examined ways. JPEWP will focus on women practitioners as invisible or concealed labour and innovators, and ways the female puppet figure reveals and conceals dominate ideology and anxiety about the female. This project investigates inscriptions and subversions of gender, tracing both its history and alternative, and feminist interpretations focusing on the female character Joan/Judy beginning with early Modern representations of the female figure to contemporary radical feminist re-imaginings. To manage the expansive time frame, I will use case studies from specific culturally volatile moments situated within a trans-historical framework that will be connected through the theoretical approach and common questions. The project will be an interdisciplinary investigation that goes beyond standard understandings of ‘text’ to offer innovative analyses of what is usually seen as archival ‘ephemera’ in order to detect the traces that remain of puppet theatre. As violence against women and female bodies increases and in light of renewed interest in institutionalized sexism, this research investigates: how the female body is presented in a popular performance form, by whom and why. Further, by questioning the narrative of a traditional form and its history, this work destabilizes orthodox notions of a singular male dominated history.

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MSCA-IF - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowships (IF)

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Call for proposal

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(opens in new window) H2020-MSCA-IF-2020

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Coordinator

THE UNIVERSITY OF EXETER
Net EU contribution

Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.

€ 337 400,64
Address
THE QUEEN'S DRIVE NORTHCOTE HOUSE
EX4 4QJ Exeter
United Kingdom

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Region
South West (England) Devon Devon CC
Activity type
Higher or Secondary Education Establishments
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Total cost

The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.

€ 337 400,64
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