William Stark, Modern & Classical Languages & Literatures
October 27, 12:30pm
Galanti Lounge, Carothers Library & Livestreamed

What can performance art teach us about migration, democracy, identity, and belonging in an age of polarization and resurgent nationalism?

Drawing on his recent book, Artificial Savages in a Transcultural Landscape (Routledge, 2026), William Stark explores the provocative performance work of Guillermo Gómez-Peña, Coco Fusco, Violeta Luna, and the international collective La Pocha Nostra. Through the lenses of decolonial theory, border studies, and transculturality, the presentation examines how these artists employ multilingualism, ritual, satire, bodily vulnerability, and audience participation to challenge dominant narratives surrounding race, migration, citizenship, and cultural identity.

Positioning the U.S.–México border as both a geopolitical reality and a theatrical space where power, spectacle, and identity are continually negotiated, the talk investigates how performance becomes a form of embodied dissent. These artists expose the colonial and racialized assumptions that continue to shape contemporary migration regimes while creating alternative spaces for dialogue, memory, and community.

At a moment marked by increasing political polarization, intensified border enforcement, and renewed debates over democracy and belonging across the Americas and beyond, this presentation invites participants to consider how performance art can illuminate the cultural and political struggles that define our present moment.