Member News: ACTiF (American Contemporary Theater in France)
ATDS Member Emeline Jouve establishes ACTiF (American Contemporary Theater in France) research program!
Why does American theater, despite the United States’ booming performing arts industry and global cultural influence, have such limited visibility on French stages? ACTiF is a pioneering action-research project that tackles this paradox, bridging a critical gap between performance studies and international cultural policy. It also connects ongoing research on French and US theaters, fostering new transatlantic dialogues. The importation of American theater into France stems from selective processes rooted in specific historical, cultural, and political contexts—governed by subjective forces that require in-depth analysis.
ACTiF pursues two main objectives:
- To map the epistemology of cultural transfer mechanisms, identifying the aesthetic, political, and diplomatic stakes behind the circulation of American plays in France from the 1960s to today.
- To create practical tools for scholars, artists, cultural professionals, and the general public—stimulating research on transatlantic exchanges and boosting the presence of American theater in France.
To achieve these goals, ACTiF embraces action-research, bringing together a dynamic network of researchers across disciplines and theater practitioners (artists and cultural agents).
The project is structured around four main themes:
- Taking Inventory of US Theater in France
- Mapping France-US Theater Relations
- Investigating Adaptations
- Cross-Referencing Cultural Differences
Founded by Emeline Jouve, professor of US theater at Toulouse-Jean Jaurès University, ACTiF is a four-year program funded by the French National Research Agency (Agence Nationale de la Recherche).
Its consortium includes leading academic institutions—Université Toulouse-Jean Jaurès, Université Toulouse Capitole, Sorbonne Université, Université Gustave Eiffel, Université Paris Nanterre, and Université de Lorraine—as well as major cultural partners in France and the United States: Théâtre de la Cité (Toulouse), Théâtre Garonne (Toulouse), Festival d’Automne (Paris), New York Theatre Workshop, Festival Seuls en Scène (Princeton University), Martin E. Segal Theatre Center (New York), La Chartreuse (Avignon), Maison Antoine Vitez (Paris), Les Solitaires Intempestifs, Deuxième Époque, Nouvelles Scènes Anglophones (PUM), and the Performing Arts Department of the French Embassy in the US–Villa Albertine.
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