RESEARCH IN PROGRESS SEMINAR SERIES

AT THE ROYAL ANTHROPOLOGICAL INSTITUTE

Friday 2 October, 4.30 pm

Half an Hour in Belfast: theatricality (and a haircut) in the ethnographic present

Karen Lane, St Andrews University

This event is free, but places must be booked. To book tickets please go to: https://karenlane.eventbrite.co.uk

Sometimes, an unexpected encounter in the field offers up a richness that could take us down any number of interesting, anthropological paths. Does the path we choose and the trope we view it through liberate or constrict the analysis? This paper will consider one such ethnographic moment - a haircut, accompanied by a dramatic performance from the hairdresser – and with explore theatricality as an anthropological enquiry. By deconstructing the ethnography as theatre I will consider what anthropological knowledge can be gleaned from such as short, and random, encounter.