Lawrence Prize Announcement

[Scott, Shelley]

CATR/ACRT is pleased to announce the results of the competition for the 2011 Robert Lawrence Prize, awarded to the best paper presented at our recent conference by an emerging scholar.

The 2011 Prize is awarded to Nicholas Hanson for his paper, "A Solo Census: One-Person Productions as a Rising Tide?"
The committee applauds the freshness and clarity with which Hanson engages with an important issue in Canadian theatre and performance. Hanson's paper provides a well-organized examination into the rise of solo shows and the reasons for them, offering empirical data and careful consideration of the connections to storytelling, individual empowerment, and issues of national identity. The endeavour is also praiseworthy for the volume of research and effort that went into its preparation. Hanson's work is significant, both in terms of how it connects to previous work on Canadian solo performance, and in its potential to influence future research on the subject.

 

The committee also gave an Honourable Mention to David Owen for his paper, "Performing an Historical Narrative to Sell a Sense of Place: Making a Site Specific."
Owen offers a complex and theoretically sophisticated paper that draws on Baudrillard and others to offer a Marxist reading of the performativity of Mackenzie Towne in Calgary, a neo-traditional community, with its ruins that recall a church. The paper builds an engaging argument about the construction (literally) and marketing of a performed space and its effect (and affect) on those within it. The paper is well-written and well-researched, and the presentation was confident and impressive.

 

Congratulations to Nicholas and Dave! The Robert Lawrence Prize was established in 1995 by the Association to honour the memory and contribution of a valued member and friend. The prize recognizes the research of an emerging scholar who has presented an outstanding paper at the Association's yearly conference. The award of $200.00 is supported by the generous donations of Mrs. Robert G. Lawrence.

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