Culture Talk: Art as Method: Performance and Research in Conversation

What happens when art becomes a research method?

This public conversation explores how theatre and embodied practice can reshape how knowledge is made within and beyond the university. The speakers will reflect on how artistic processes allow different bodies and histories to enter research, and how performance can open space for experiences that resist straightforward narration.

The event is led by Akshay Khanna and Effie Makepeace, members of RAPT (Research Activism Performance Theatre), whose work brings together theatre and collaborative research to explore art as political and methodological practice.

Ayisha Saniya will present work developed during her time as a Venice Fellow (British Council), using arts-based methods to explore migration and cultural identity in dialogue with the 2025 Venice Biennale.

Hosted by CRÍA (Creative Research / Instituting Art), School of Heritage and Culture, University of Leicester, in partnership with the Attenborough Arts Centre. Supported by the Leicester Institute of Advanced Studies.

This event also forms part of the celebrations marking Museum Studies at Leicester: 60 years of global impact.

Recommended Price: £5

What are ‘Pay What You Can’ tickets?

We believe that that arts should be accessible for all. For this reason some of our shows and events this year will be ‘Pay What You Can’, meaning that you decide how much you can or want to pay. This expands access to the arts for those who may not have been able to participate otherwise, or gives others the chance to support those who cannot by paying a bit extra.

You will see multiple prices available for each show or event. You can select whichever price you can afford or would like to pay – thank you.