LIFT and the London 2012 Olympics: spectacular experiences
Patey-Ferguson, Phoebe (2023) LIFT and the London 2012 Olympics: spectacular experiences. New Theatre Quarterly, 39 (1). pp. 18-33. ISSN 0266-464X (Print), 1474-0613 (Online)
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Abstract
In 2012, London staged the Olympic Games and the associated Cultural Olympiad which produced the ‘London 2012’ Festival, funding a wide series of events including many of the London International Festival of Theatre’s (LIFT) productions. A decade on, this article considers the impact of these overlapping events during a period of unprecedent austerity in the United Kingdom, and how arts events might be considered to be colluding with the government’s own agenda. The connection between neoliberal governance with its programme of increased privatisation, rapid gentrification and opportunistic marketing of diversity is examined with reference to increasing nationalism through Olympiad displays together with the increasing influence of the ‘experience economy’ as defined by Joseph Pine and James Gilmore. Phoebe Patey-Ferguson is a Lecturer in Theatre and Social Change at Rose Bruford College. This is the second article for New Theatre Quarterly derived from Patey-Ferguson’s PhD on LIFT in its social, cultural and political context following ‘LIFT and the GLC versus Thatcher: London’s Cultural Battleground in 1981,’ published with an accompanying interview with LIFT’s founding Artistic Directors in Volume 36, Number 1, February 2020. Key Terms: London International Festival of Theatre, festivals, Olympic Games, Cultural Olympiad, London 2012, experience economy, multiculturalism, sociology of theatre, spectacle.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Keywords: | London International Festival of Theatre, festivals, Olympic Games, Cultural Olympiad, London 2012, experience economy, multiculturalism, sociology of theatre, spectacle |
| Depositing User: | Research Bruford |
| Date Deposited: | 17 Nov 2023 10:00 |
| Last Modified: | 17 Nov 2023 10:00 |
| URI: | https://bruford.repository.guildhe.ac.uk/id/eprint/52 |
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