Marisa Carnesky has been a pivotal figure in performance and live art over the past thirty years. As a showwoman, she champions alternative visions of matriarchal entertainment utopias and redefines women's relationships with power and politics. She carries on the legacy of dynamic female performers, showcasing remarkable theatrical flair and extraordinary talents that defy traditional management. Showwomen, as she emphasizes, work for themselves and they command the efforts of others.
In this book Eirini Kartsaki delves into the concept of 'showwomanry,' charting the fascinating history of remarkable and unconventional women in entertainment. Women who were stone eaters, fire walkers, women who hypnotized alligators, or presented crucifixion shows; women who worked for themselves; women that were often referred to as showgirls, despite their extraordinary skill and artistry.
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Eirini Kartsaki is a performance practitioner, writer and Senior Lecturer in Drama at East 15 Acting School, University of Essex, UK. She is the author of Repetition in Performance: Returns and Invisible Forces (2017).
