A talk on ‘Chennai’s Popular Sabha Theatre’ by Dr Kristen Rudisill

About the Talk
This talk gives a glimpse into Dr Rudisill’s 2022 book about Sabha Theater, a type of Tamil-language popular theater that started in Chennai (Madras) in the period following India’s independence, thriving especially between 1965 and 1985. She complements historical research with ethnographic information obtained through interviews and observations in order to contextualize Sabha Theatre historically, politically, and aesthetically within the wider history of the Tamil stage and a performance scene.

About the Speaker
Dr Kristen Rudisill is a Professor of Popular Culture and current Director of the Asian Studies Program at BGSU. She has a background in religious studies and earned her PhD in Asian Studies from the University of Texas in Austin. Her research focuses on Tamil theater, dance, and literature in India, Sri Lanka, and the Tamil diaspora. She has had two Fulbright Fellowships in India and sees Chennai as a second home. Her book Honeymoon Couples and Jurassic Babies: Identity and Play in Chennai’s Post-Independence Sabha Theater was published with SUNY Press in 2022. She has published in a number of edited volumes and journals such as the Journal of Popular Culture, the Indian Theatre Journal (for which she serves on the editorial board), the Asian Theatre Journal, South Asian Popular Culture Journal, Inter-Asia Cultural Studies Journal, Ecumenica, and Studies in Musical Theatre.