Talk: "Two Thespians Walk into the Apocalypse: Making Art in a State of Emergency" by Holly Hughes and Katie Pearl (CAS MillerComm Lecture Series)
- Event Date: Wednesday, January 28, 2026
- Time: 7:00 pm–8:30 pm (CST)
- Location: Knight Auditorium, Spurlock Museum, 600 S. Gregory St., Urbana, IL
Join us for a spirited and gloriously unruly conversation between Holly Hughes—legendary provocateur of the Culture Wars and queer feminist performance icon—and Katie Pearl, acclaimed theatre-maker whose work wrestles (artfully) with the climate crisis. Together, they take on the unsayable: rape culture, ecological collapse, and the ever-growing list of words, topics, and truths deemed “too risky” for public discourse. Through a conversation that is equal parts critical inquiry and creative exchange, Hughes and Pearl reflect on strategies of resistance, the politics of representation, and the generative possibilities that emerge when artists address what dominant discourse attempts to silence.
Cosponsor: Center for Advanced Study
Contact
For further information on this event, contact Center for Advanced Study at cas@illinois.edu (email link).
All are welcome. To request disability-related accommodations for this event, please contact Brian Cudiamat at cudiamat@illinois.edu (email link) or (217) 244-5586.