Stefanie Sachsenmaier is Senior Lecturer in Theatre Arts, BA Theatre Arts (Performance) Programme Leader and Senior HEA Fellow. Her research interests and publications relate to the processual in creative practice. Over ten years she worked closely with British choreographer Rosemary Butcher and has published a series of writings in this context. Further research areas include collaborative practices in performance-making and the ways that performance practices extend into the socio-political context. She sits on the editorial advisory board of Choreographic Practices Journal and co-facilitates the Politicised Artistic Practices Research Initiative at the Faculty of Creative Arts and Industries/Mdx University. With a background as a performer, she is also an experienced tai chi practitioner, currently holding the title of Overall Female Grandchampion in Wu Style Tai Chi Chuan, awarded at the International Wu Style Tai Chi Championships in Singapore, 2017.
Teaching specialisms include experimental practices, performer training, critical theory, performance and philosophy, performance and politics.
Ongoing PhD supervision in the areas of dance and digital technology, performance and martial arts, performance and spiritual approaches.
List of Publications
Co-edited book
Colin, Noyale and Sachsenmaier, Stefanie (eds.), Collaboration in Performance Practice – Premises, Workings and Failures, Palgrave Macmillan – including co-written Introduction – 2016, ISBN 978-1-137-46245-9
Articles and chapters in edited collections
Bucther, R. and Sachsenmaier, S. 'Rosemary Butcher: After Kaprow – A Visual Journey', in: Nick Kaye, Simon Jones, Johanna Linsley, and Paul Clarke (eds.) Artists in the Archive, Routledge 2018
'Silent Transformations in Choreography-Making over Time: Rosemary Butcher’s Practice of ‘Looking Back and Ahead’' in: Main, Lesley (ed.) Transmissions in Dance, Palgrave Macmillan, 2017
‘Productive misapprehensions– ArtsCross as a cross-cultural collaborative zone of contestation of dance practice’ in: Colin, Noyale and Sachsenmaier, Stefanie (eds.), Collaboration in Performance Practice – Premises, Workings and Failures, Palgrave Macmillan, 2016
‘Studio Mind, The Empty Place; Gary Wragg’s Approach to Painting: An Interview by Stefanie Sachsenmaier’ in: Constant Within The Change: Gary Wragg – Five Decades of Paintings: A Comprehensive Catalogue, Bristol: Sansom and Company, 2014, ISBN – 978-1-908326-55-3
Contribution to Laban Sourcebook, ed. Dick McCaw, Oxon: Routledge, 2011 - preface to and selection of excerpts from Laban's The World of the Dancer; translation (with Dick McCaw) of excerpts from four of Laban's published books: The World of the Dancer, Gymnastics and Dance for Children, Gymnastics and Dance, Choreography, ISBN – 10: 0415543320, ISBN-13: 978-0415543323
Journal articles
‘Ways of Doing; Ways of Thinking; Ways of Moving Together: Considerations for Cross-Cultural Encounters and Exchanges in and through Dance Practice’, Choreographic Practices Journal, 2016
Melrose, S., Sachsenmaier, S. and Bucther, R. ‘Just in Time: Rosemary Butcher, Making Memories and Marks’, Performance Research Journal On An/Notations, 2015
‘Answer the Question: ‘How do you know when training is working?’’, Theatre, Dance and Performance Training, 2014 – edited interview by Dick McCaw 5:1, pp. 76-84, doi: 10.1080/19443927.2014.894384
‘Reinventing the Past: Rosemary Butcher encounters Allan Kaprow’s 18 Happenings in 6 Parts’, Choreographic Practices Journal, Vol. 4 No. 2, 2013, pp. 223-244, doi: 10.1386/chor.4.2.223_1
‘Beyond Allan Kaprow: An interview with Rosemary Butcher’, Journal of Dance & Somatic Practices 4: 2, pp. 267–281, doi: 10.1386/jdsp.4.2.267_1, 2012
”Vom Archiv zur Neuerfindung – Fragen zur künstlerischen Handschrift im kreativen Schaffensprozess zeitgenössischer Performance“ ["From the archive to a reinvention – questions on the artistic signature in the creative process of contemporary performance”], GTF-Jahrbuch 22 "Tanzerfahrung und Welterkenntnis", edited by Claudia Behrens, Helga Burkhard, Claudia Fleischle Braun & Krystyna Obermaier. Leipzig: Henschel-Verlag, 2012, ISBN-10: 3894877308, ISBN-13: 978-3894877309
Books reviews
Petra Maria Meyer (ed.), Intuition, Munich: Wilhelm Fink: Theaterforschung.de: http://www.theaterforschung.de/rezension.php4?ID=1817, 2013
Libby Worth with Jasmin Vardimon, Jasmin Vardimon's Dance Theatre: Movement, Memory and Metaphor, Dance Research Journal, Volume 35 Issue 2, Page 280-281, ISSN 0264-2875, 2017
Conference contributions
“Forming Solidarities Through Collaboration: Towards a Politics of Togetherness”, Invited roundtable provocation, Performance and the Body Working Group, TAPRA: Agonistic politics in performance: practices of difference, disagreement, and respect in theatre, dance, and sport, Brunel University, London, 2018
What was she doing then? Ein Gespräch über Rosemary Butcher [A conversation about Rosemary Butcher]’, Invited roundtable contribution with Sabine Glenz, Walter Heun and Andrea Niederbuchner, ‘Housing the Temporary. Zugänge zur eigenen Geschichte [Approaches to one’s own history]’, International and Interdisciplinary Symposium schwere reiter, Munich, 2018
‘The Politics of Collaboration’ Roundtable with Gigi Argyropoulou, Noyale Colin and Valeria Graziano, PSi#23 “OverFlow”, Hamburg, 2017
"Tracing Lost Legacies - Remembering Rosemary Butcher", Keynote with Susan Melrose, Memory at Work: Rosemary Butcher in the Present Tense, London, 2016
“Making Marks and Memories – The Body in Recorded Time”, Keynote with Rosemary Butcher, Memory Sentiment Body Space Object Symposium, Coventry, 2015
“On Not Neglecting the Near for the Far – The Practice of Wu Style Tai Chi Chuan”, Martial Arts Studies Conference, co-authored paper with Mark Langweiler, Cardiff University, 2015
“Time’s Markings/Marking Time/s: Rosemary Butcher’s Secrets of the Open Sea”. IFTR “Theatre and Stratification”, co-authored paper with Susan Melrose, University of Warwick, 2014
“Productive misapprehensions – ArtsCross as a trans-cultural collaborative zone of contestation of performance practice”. PSi “Avant-Garde, Tradition, Community”, Theatre Academy Shanghai, 2014
“Tai Chi intervention” at Research Lab Falling About, hosted by Independent Dance’s WinLab, Siobhan Davies Studios, London, 2013, research notes published: http://roehamptondance.com/falling/writings/
“Just in Time - ‘Momentary’ Events in the Making of Rosemary Butcher’s Signature Practices”, co-authored paper with Susan Melrose, PSi “Now Then”, Stanford University, California, USA 2013
‘ArtsCross’ Roundtable with Christopher Bannerman, Yunyu Yue, Yatin Lin, Xin Wang, Alexandra Kolb, SDHS Conference Dance ACTions—Traditions and Transformations, Trondheim, Norway, 2013
“Work Me Out! Spontaneous Combustion, Remote Collaboration – Researching into various collaborative set-ups in performance-making”, Symposium on Collaboration, Middlesex University, London, 2013
"Rosemary Butcher, After Kaprow and Beyond", Remake Symposium, Performing Documents, Arnolfini, Bristol, 2012
"Somebody’s other – crossing cultures in performance practice" (with Chris Bannerman and Martin Welton), PSi18 “performance, culture, industry”, Leeds, 2012
"On ‘thinking’ and ‘not-thinking’ in performance-making: a cross-cultural philosophical investigation", How Performance Thinks, PSi Philosophy and Performance, London, 2012
"Vom Archiv zur Neuerfindung – Fragen zur künstlerischen Handschrift im kreativen Schaffensprozess zeitgenössischer Performance", GTF Tanzforschung, TANZerfahrung und WELTkenntnis, Cologne, Germany, 2011
"Reinventing the past: Rosemary Butcher", IFTR "Tradition, Innovation, Community”, Osaka University, Japan, 2011
"A future beyond Allan Kaprow: Rosemary Butcher reinvents 18 Happenings in 6 Parts", Dance and Somatic Practices Conference, Coventry University, UK, 2011
"Spontaneous combustion (a performance enquiry into spontaneous live decision-making)", Colloquium on Artistic Research in Performing Arts, Theatre Academy Helsinki, Finland, 2011
"Performance-making as a process-specific discipline: the “dispositif” as a conceptual tool for the theorisation of performance-making processes", contribution to "Performance as Research" Working Group, IFTR "Cultures of Modernity", Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität Munich, Germany, 2010
"How to Act?", Central School of Speech and Drama, London, UK, 2007
Invited guest lectures, masterclasses and research presentations
“Collaborating Across Cultures – Negotiating Contemporary Dance Practices”, student lecture, Beijing Dance Academy, 2015
“Devised performance-making processes – philosophy and performance practice”, research presentations to MA students at Central School of Speech and Drama, 2013
Tai Chi Masterclass to BA Dance students, University of Northampton, 2013
“Articulating processes of performance-making – towards a philosophy of performance practice”, invited research presentation as part of the ‘Performance Philosophy’ series at Trinity Laban, London, 2013
"On Embodiment', MA lecture series, Central School of Speech and Drama, London, 2012
"Practice-as-research in the performing arts: Rosemary Butcher reinvents Allan Kaprow's '18 Happenings in 6 Parts' - a case study" at "The International School for the Development of Graduate Students", Osaka City University, 2011
"Reinventing 18 Happenings in 6 Parts", research presentation with Rosemary Butcher, De Montfort University, Leicester, 2011
"On Embodiment", invited panel discussion with John Rothwell and Dick McCaw, Central School of Speech and Drama, London, 2011
Melrose, Susan and Sachsenmaier, Stefanie (2019) Writing 'Practice' /Practising/ 'Writing' (in the doctoral research context). In: Researching (in/as) Motion: A Resource Collection - Artistic Doctorates in Europe. Midgelow, Vida L. and Bacon, Jane and Hilton, Rebecca and Kramer, Paula , eds. Theatre Academy, University of the Arts Helsinki, Helsinki. ISBN 9789523530126 (Published online first)
Butcher, Rosemary and Sachsenmaier, Stefanie (2018) Rosemary Butcher: after Kaprow – a visual journey. In: Artists in the Archive: Creative and Curatorial Engagements with Documents of Art and Performance. Clarke, Paul and Jones, Simon and Kaye, Nick and Linsley, Johanna , eds. Routledge, Abingdon, pp. 72-77. ISBN 9781138929784
Sachsenmaier, Stefanie (2017) Silent transformations in choreography-making over time: Rosemary Butcher’s practice of 'Looking Back and Ahead'. In: Transmissions in Dance. Main, Lesley , ed. Palgrave Macmillan, pp. 163-188. ISBN 9783319648729
Sachsenmaier, Stefanie (2016) Ways of doing, ways of thinking, ways of moving together: considerations for cross-cultural encounters and exchanges in and through dance practice. Choreographic Practices , 7 (2). pp. 305-326. ISSN 2040-5669
Melrose, Susan and Sachsenmaier, Stefanie and Butcher, Rosemary (2015) Just in time: Rosemary Butcher, making memories and marks. Performance Research , 20 (6). pp. 87-94. ISSN 1352-8165
Co-Investigator Artistic Doctorates in Europe (ADiE https://www.artisticdoctorates.com/) funded by Erasmus+, led by Prof. Vida Midgelow
Research and Development funding with Rosemary Butcher, Arts Council England - Reclaiming the Territories
Senior Fellow Higher Education Academy
Editorial Advisory Board Member of Choreographic Practices Journal
Member of Research Ethics Committee, Middlesex University
Peer reviewing for Palgrave Macmillan, Theatre, Dance and Performance Training Journal; Dance and Somatic Practices Journal, Platform: Journal of Theatre and Performing Arts.
Academic researcher as part of ArtsCross International Research Network, http://www.rescen.net
Writer for ChoreoRoam (with Prof. Chris Bannerman), The Place, London, 2011
Research Event Organisation
Performing Solidarity event series in collaboration with Live Art Development Agency and Noyale Colin/University of Winchester, October 2019 - March 2020
Per/Forming Futures: Investigating Artistic Doctorates in Dance and Performance, Research Event curated by ADiE, Middlesex University, London, 11-13 April 2019
Memory at Work: Rosemary Butcher in the Present Tense, Event organised with Kirsty Alexander, Lauren Potter, and Independent Dance, Siobhan Davies Dance Studios, London, 17 December 2016
The Politics of Collaboration: European Currents, Research Event, Middlesex University, Hendon, 24 September 2016
Standing Conference of University Drama Departments [SCUDD] Annual Conference, Middlesex University, 27-28 March 2015, member of organising committee
ON COLLABORATION II – The Politics of collaborative performance-making, Symposium Middlesex University, Hendon, 18 May 2013
ON COLLABORATION – Time, Memory, Place, Symposium Middlesex University, Trent Park, 4 May 2012
Adviser for the Arts, UK Network of German Academics, run by the German Academic Exchange Service and the German Embassy, London