Rachel Hann
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rachelhann.bsky.social
Rachel Hann
@rachelhann.bsky.social
Associate Professor at Northumbria University | Studies cultures of scenography, climate crisis, & transness | AHRC PI for Trans Performance Now | Author: #BeyondScenography | Co-founder: Critical Costume | Loves cats & cosplay

rachelhann.com
My school is looking to appoint a new Head! Come and be our Head of the School of Design, Arts and Creative Industries at Northumbria University.

Details here:
work4.northumbria.ac.uk#en/sites/CX_...
work4.northumbria.ac.uk
July 30, 2025 at 2:16 PM
Trans Performance Now Festival
27-29th June 2025
Live Theatre, Newcastle (NE1 3DQ)

A celebration of trans-led UK theatre and performance practices hosted in collaboration with Northumbria University, Live Theatre and Curious Arts.

Sign up here:
www.live.org.uk/whats-on/tra...
June 8, 2025 at 3:01 PM
Reposted by Rachel Hann
Theatre must put design at its heart to meet the needs of modern audiences, argues David Shearing 👇
David Shearing on design-led theatre
Theatres need a fundamental shift in how they support the creative processes behind design-led shows for the long term, says David Shearing
www.thestage.co.uk
June 4, 2025 at 10:24 AM
Reposted by Rachel Hann
This week's Orlando research event sees Charli and Laurie in-conversation with the fantastic Dr Rachel Hann (@rachelhann.bsky.social) to discuss trans dramaturgy and embodiment.

www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/staging-tr...

Join us on Friday, 9 May, at 5pm in the Faculty of English.
Staging Transfeminine Embodiment - piss/CARNATION & Dr Rachel Hann
In this 'in-conversation' event, piss/CARNATION discuss bringing trans femme-bodies to the stage with Dr Rachel Hann (Northumbria U).
www.eventbrite.co.uk
May 7, 2025 at 12:24 PM
Reposted by Rachel Hann
For 2 years, I’ve been an artist mentor for Future Lab, a European network of 12 venues + 14 artists collaborating to reimagine how theatre engages communities. Loved seeing the results in Luxembourg this weekend!

futurelaboratory.eu
December 2, 2024 at 9:13 AM
Can bad costumes do good things? This is the title of a brief afterword I've written for Susan Marshall's new book Insubordinate Costume. Her book explores scenographic costumes in historical and contemporary art practices. Go check it out

www.rachelhann.com/publications...
Can bad costumes do good things? — Dr Rachel Hann
... bad costumes can reveal the work of costume that may have otherwise been unseen or dismissed as frivolous. Bad costumes can offer a method for investigating how costumes are judged, understood, an...
www.rachelhann.com
December 11, 2024 at 3:12 PM
“It rather assumes that I am doing my role in spite of my undergraduate, masters and PhD in drama, rather than because of it. I’m clear it is because of it.” 👏👏🙌
NEW on Wonkhe: De Montfort University vice chancellor Katie Normington questions why the data on creative arts graduates fails to capture the volume and power of their impact https://buff.ly/3Z74I2z
November 27, 2024 at 9:19 AM
Reposted by Rachel Hann
I’m currently writing a book titled ‘Staging Transness’. Overall aim is to map trans* & nonbinary ways of making theatre/performance through interviews and case study analysis. Open to recommendations of interesting examples (I’ve already got a lot, but always nice to hear about new stuff).
November 17, 2024 at 11:28 AM
My book #BeyondScenography featured a manifesto where each line was originally written as tweets to sum up each chapter. Feels fitting to reshare here. Retrospectively it’s been referenced as the ‘Scenographics Manifesto’. I’ll note each below as well. 💜🦋🧐
November 18, 2024 at 5:11 PM
Reposted by Rachel Hann
How is a feeling of world produced through staged material cultures? What if 'empty space' is not the starting point for scenography? These questions drive my new article 'Pluriversal scenographics and staging world feelings' in Cultural Geographies. And Open access too!

doi.org/10.1177/1474...
Sage Journals: Your gateway to world-class research journals
Subscription and open access journals from Sage, the world's leading independent academic publisher.
doi.org
March 26, 2024 at 11:53 AM
I’m currently writing a book titled ‘Staging Transness’. Overall aim is to map trans* & nonbinary ways of making theatre/performance through interviews and case study analysis. Open to recommendations of interesting examples (I’ve already got a lot, but always nice to hear about new stuff).
November 17, 2024 at 11:28 AM
Reposted by Rachel Hann
What does scenography offer cultural geography? This was the starting point for my article ‘On Atmospherics’. I’m in the midst of finalising a book that expands upon this question. Not sure if scenography should be in the main title yet. But I’ll get there!
journals.openedition.org/ambiances/4172
On Atmospherics: Staging Stormzy and nonbinary thinking
In the summer of 2019, the UK Grime artist Stormzy became the first Black British performer to headline the Glastonbury Festival. Influenced by American hip-hop and the ‘UK Garage’ scene of the la...
journals.openedition.org
February 7, 2024 at 10:08 AM
How is a feeling of world produced through staged material cultures? What if 'empty space' is not the starting point for scenography? These questions drive my new article 'Pluriversal scenographics and staging world feelings' in Cultural Geographies. And Open access too!

doi.org/10.1177/1474...
Sage Journals: Your gateway to world-class research journals
Subscription and open access journals from Sage, the world's leading independent academic publisher.
doi.org
March 26, 2024 at 11:53 AM
From pleasure activism to performance afterlifes, TaPRA 2024 at Northumbria University has something for you! The CfPs for our 13 working groups and TaPRA Gallery are now available: 4-6 Sept 2024.

Deadline for proposals 10 April 2024.

tapra.org/current/
2024 conference – TaPRA
tapra.org
March 16, 2024 at 4:24 PM
What does scenography offer cultural geography? This was the starting point for my article ‘On Atmospherics’. I’m in the midst of finalising a book that expands upon this question. Not sure if scenography should be in the main title yet. But I’ll get there!
journals.openedition.org/ambiances/4172
On Atmospherics: Staging Stormzy and nonbinary thinking
In the summer of 2019, the UK Grime artist Stormzy became the first Black British performer to headline the Glastonbury Festival. Influenced by American hip-hop and the ‘UK Garage’ scene of the la...
journals.openedition.org
February 7, 2024 at 10:08 AM
I 💜 word clouds. Final article edit I've been working on for the last 3 years. Changed from climate crisis scenographics to pluriversal scenographics & world feelings.

It is also an attempt to engage more directly with cultural geography. You got to hussle these days ...
October 17, 2023 at 10:17 AM
I’m writing briefly about enacting ‘the void’ in theatre. I’ve got Svoboda talking about a fear of looking into ‘dark space’ at the start of designing a show. Grotowski / Brook also (but looking for designers). I’ve also got critiques of the ‘Black Box’ (Hannah, Wiles). Any more on void space?
October 12, 2023 at 12:11 PM
I’ll play.
- what does the second world in ‘it matters what worlds world worlds’ mean for scenography?
- what ever happened to theatrics as a critical framework?
Bluesky academics, let's get to know each other! Quote this & tell me: 1) a project you are working on & 2) an odd idea/theory you aren't working on but keep thinking about.
Here's mine:
- Whether we can have statehood without inhabitable land.
- The legal-philosophical symbolism in Wagner's Ring.
October 11, 2023 at 10:53 AM
My cat family member doesn’t seem to want me to make the final edits on this article …
October 10, 2023 at 11:21 AM
Important info here on the focus on widening participation, and while improvements noted, there remains significant gaps.
Fascinating new report from the Sutton Trust on 30 years of access to uni www.suttontrust.com/wp-content/u...
October 9, 2023 at 1:58 PM
What do costumes do? My chapter 'Costume Scenographics' is now available as a pre-publication version included in the limited-run book Costume Agency by Christina Lindgren and Sodja Lotker.

www.rachelhann.com/publications...
Costume Scenographics — Dr Rachel Hann
What do costumes do? I ask this question with two positions in mind. First, I am interested in how costumes produce a sense of atmosphere, occasion, or event. Second, I propose that costuming as a s...
www.rachelhann.com
October 8, 2023 at 3:16 PM
Now I feel I’ve got to catch everyone up on what I haven’t been posting! Nice to feel able to post again.
October 8, 2023 at 3:13 PM