Tragedy Queered

Ancient Greece and Rome have long had a strong impact on LGBTQI+ identities, politics and culture. From by-words for homosexuality such as ‘Greek love’, to Taylor Mac’s queer retelling of Socrates’ death in The Hang (2022), passing through trans Tiresias(es), lesbian feminist furies, the Lambda as queer symbol, non-binary Antigones, tunic-clad pornotopias or languid Sebastianic bodies, Greece and Rome have appeared to LGBTQI+ thought, culture and politics as a necessary and useful utopia, refuge, framework and origin.

The Tragedy Queered conference will explore the specific impact of Graeco-Roman tragedy on queer culture. The aim of the conference is to create a more focused understanding of the outcomes, benefits, stimulations and challenges of using Greek and Roman tragedy as a framework, channel and provocation in diverse queer cultural contexts and media. The papers in this conference will explore the uses and utilities of Greek and Roman tragic plays, their plots and/or characters to queer culture broadly defined, including queer film, thought, written/spoken word, theatre, performance, memoir, visual arts and dance, throughout the 20^th century. Tragedy Queered will also include a panel that queers the ancient tragic texts from diverse perspectives.