The Routledge Companion to Performance and Science
The Routledge Companion to Performance and Science
Paul Johnson, Simon Parry, Adele Senior
Carla Almeida
John M. Andrick
Assad Assad
Edward Thomas Bankes
Deniz Başar
Morgan Batch
Meghan Moe Beitiks
Olive Bieringa
Julie Rose Bower
Derrick Brown-Appenzeller
Clare Button
Sofia Castellí y Tickell
Frances Clarke
Rebecca Collins
Laura Colucci-Gray
Aaron Colverson
Graça P. Corrêa
David Cottis
Dennis Del Favero
Dr Aphrodite Evangelatou
Daniel Gamito-Marques
Simon Goodwin
Rebeca Gould
Charles Green
Anthony Gritten
Dr Gemma Harman
Lydia Schulze Heuling
Dr WhiteFeather Hunter
Alexander Kelly
Matthew Kemp
Naomi Lefebvre Sell
Alisa Ballard Lin
Jonathan W. Marshall
Khalid Moinuddin
Mário Montenegro
Felipe Henrique Monteiro Oliveira
Edith Moore Hubert
Alexander Munro
Maria Carolina Monteiro Oliveira
Andrea Pagnes
Katrina Pineda
Dr Giulia Poerio
Kara Reilly
Jason Sharples
Elyse Singer
Sophy Smith
Jill Sonke
Diane Stubbings
Susanne Thurow
Nigel Townsend
Marina Heron Tsaplina
Dr Olivia Turner
Michael Valdez
Yael Via-Dorembus
Dr Sanja Vodovnik
Rachael Walton
Robert Ellis Walton
Emma Weitkamp
Dr Micia de Wet
Kaitlyn Wittig Menguc
Nele Wynants
Matthew Wyon
Mark Thomas Young
The Routledge Companion to Performance and Science investigates and illuminates the growing international interest in the intersections and interactions between theatre, drama, performance and the sciences.
These disciplines are explored through an extensive range of essays from artists, practitioners, researchers and scholars, many of whom are working in interdisciplinary, transdisciplinary or multidisciplinary contexts. With a largely contemporary focus underpinned by an introductory section that sets out a history of antecedent intersections, the volume offers a diverse range of perspectives on science, scientific methods, and scientific knowledge in dialogue with performance scholarship and practice. Our understanding of ‘practice’ is capacious, from different performance forms to science communication and interpretation, to scientific approaches to performance, to ways of generating and disseminating scientific knowledge. Within this vast scene, a number of key questions and themes emerge: How can scientific knowledge be interrogated by performance practices? How can performance explore the human implications of scientific development? How can scientific practices be understood through performance theories? How are scientists or scientific practices, and ideas represented in performance?
This is a key resource for scholars and upper-level students of performing arts, science communication, medical and health humanities, science and technology studies, and interdisciplinary arts/humanities/sciences projects.
Table of Contents
List of Contributors
Acknowledgements
Introduction, Paul Johnson, Simon Parry and Adele Senior
PART I
Histories of Science and Performance
Chapter 1. Performing Science in Early Modern England: Experimental Entertainment and its Audiences, Mark Thomas Young
Chapter 2. Dramatic representations of the astrologer on the verge of modern science, Mário Montenegro
Chapter 3. Samuel Pepys’ Traumatic Autopsia, Kara Reilly
Chapter 4. Artists with differentiated bodies in performing arts, Felipe Henrique Monteiro Oliveira
Chapter 5. The brigands of medicine: charlatanry, sexuality and medical demonstration in late nineteenth century France, Jonathan W. Marshall
Chapter 6. Physique Amusante: Optics, Mechanics, Anatomy and Anthropology at the Fairground in Nineteenth-century Europe, Nele Wynants
Chapter 7. All Fall Down: Fainting, Dying, and Mad Scenes on the Nineteenth-Century Stage, Elyse Singer
Chapter 8. “The Velocity of the Stage: Physics Meets Metaphysics in Sigizmund Krzhizhanovsky’s Theatrical Theory”, Alisa Ballard Lin
Chapter 9. ‘Heal as well as dance’: Margaret Morris Movement and physiotherapy as performance, Clare Button
PART II
Disciplined Performance
Chapter 10. Computer Science and Performance: A Reintroduction, Robert Ellis Walton
Chapter 11. ASMR – performance and psychology of sensation in the online space, Julie Rose Bower & Giulia Poerio
Chapter 12. Abnormal Psychology and The Case of Becky: Science and Imagination in the Performance of Dual Personality, John M. Andrick
Chapter 13. Investigating Biological Dramaturgies: Using cancer biology as a dramaturgical tool, Diane Stubbings
Chapter 14. The dementia science play: Balancing science with humanity in dementia-themed performance, Morgan Batch
Chapter 15. O (Symptom): Performing in between doctor, patient and cadaver, Olivia Turner
Chapter 16. Displacing performance mastery with ecological tools, Anthony Gritten
Chapter 17. The Aesthetics of Mathematics in the Physical Theatre, Yael Via-Dorembus
Chapter 18. Parameters for Understanding Uncertainty: Methodologies for Intellectual Loitering within Scientific Infrastructure & Communication, Rebecca Collins
PART III
Performance Cultures and Science
Chapter 19. Immersive Intelligent Aesthetics for Visualising Extreme Fires: Exploring Terrestrial Agency, Susanne Thurow, Dennis Del Favero, Jason Sharples, Khalid Moinuddin, Charles Green
Chapter 20. Charge – interpreting scientific research through Interdisciplinary devised practice, Sophy Smith
Chapter 21. From Carbon-Dating to Light Theory in the Dystopic Archeology of Istanbul, Deniz Başar
Chapter 22. Whose Technology? A Sufi Love Note on Decolonizing our Historical Dances with Science and Technology Studies, Assad Assad
Chapter 23. Blood Magic in Biotech – a case study, WhiteFeather Hunter
Chapter 24. The Disquieting Body in VestandPage’s Performance Art: Diagnose, Cure, Heal, Perform, Andrea Pagnes
Chapter 25. Ecosomatic practice for living and dying on a damaged planet, Olive Bieringa
Chapter 26. Building Science Communication as a Space for Scientists: Science Comedy in the United Kingdom, Edward Thomas Bankes
Chapter 27. Room Service as sf theatre: communicating science through sf performance, Sanja Vodovnik
Chapter 28. No Space In Between: A Case Study of Theatrescience, Rebecca Gould and David Cottis
PART IV
Sciences of Performance
Chapter 29. Banishing homunculus: in-bodying imagination in acting processes, Micia de Wet
Chapter 30. Emotion Theory and Theatre Practice: From William James to Konstantin Stanislavski, Aphrodite Evangelatou
Chapter 31. Theatre as Science: Performing Empathy in Beatrix Cenci, Graça P. Corrêa
Chapter 32. Centring the ‘subjective’ when examining performance in the field of Dance Medicine and Science, Gemma Harman
Chapter 33. Conversations on the tensions of dance and science in an emerging research field, Frances Clarke, Naomi Lefebvre Sell, Matthew Wyon, Derrick Brown-Appenzeller
Chapter 34. Rehearsing the Art and Science of Healing: Simulation Performance in Nursing Education, Alexander Munro
PART V
Science, Performance and Communication
Chapter 35. Audiences for science-theatre: valued but under-explored, Carla Almeida and Emma Weitkamp
Chapter 36. Performing Public Health, Meghan Moe Beitiks, Marina Heron Tsaplina, Aaron Colverson, Kaitlyn Wittig Menguc, Jill Sonke, Edith Moore Hubert & Katrina Pineda
Chapter 37. Pharmakon: An Experimental Collaboration between Performance and Pharmacy, Michael Valdez
Chapter 38. Don’t Smile, Nigel Townsend
Chapter 39. Taking over Authorship – The Power of Writing Processes for another Science, Lydia Schulze Heuling & Laura Colucci-Gray
Chapter 40. Discussing problematic legacies of science through theatre: racism, misogyny, and skull measuring in The Science of the Future, Daniel Gamito-Marques
Chapter 41. Wild Things: Using improvised comedy to communicate and explore conservation science, Sofia Castelló y Tickell & Matthew Kemp
Chapter 42. ‘A Small Show About Big Ideas: Third Angel’s 600 People’, Simon Goodwin, Alex Kelly & Rachael Walton
Index
Available
2026
English
978-032-13899-2
Study
Routledge
Paul Johnson is Dean of Academic Quality and Professor of Theatre and Performance at the University of Chester.
Simon Parry is Senior Lecturer in Drama and Arts Management at The University of Manchester.
Adele Senior is Reader in Theatre and Performance at Leeds Beckett University.