Here is a Call for Proposals for participation in “Afro-Cuban Legacies: Visual Arts, Literature, Theatre, Music, and Religion”—an international conference to be held at the University of Missouri, April 7-10, 2021. The conference includes the participation Juan Roberto Diago, Alberto Lescay Merencio, Nancy Morejón, Fátima Patterson, Albertico Lescay Castellanos, and Zule Guerra. The deadline for submitting proposals is November 15, 2020.

Afro-Cuban Legacies: Visual Arts, Literature, Theatre, Music, and Religion will be an international high impact interdisciplinary conference, bringing to MU six leading contemporary Cuban artists. Addressing Afro-Cuban culture, arts, and religious traditions, the artists are: Alberto Lescay Merencio and Juan Roberto Diago, prominent award-winning multimedia artists; Nancy Morejón, poet laureate; Fátima Patterson, actress, storyteller, playwright, and director; and Albertico Lescay Castellanos and Zule Guerra, young leading Cuban jazz composers and performers.

The conference will include exhibits of invited visual artists, an audio-visual art exhibit by University of Havana artists; poetry readings, storytelling, theater, and dance performances, Cuban jazz concerts, artists round table discussions, and scholarly presentations. Documentaries by Juanamaría Cordones-Cook examining the life and work of Afro-Cuban artists will also be screened.

As an interdisciplinary event, conference will involve Black Studies, Romance Languages and Literatures, Music, Theatre, Visual Studies, Digital Story Telling, Film, Religion, Gender Studies, and Education, among other disciplines.

Proposals for paper presentations are welcome on topics related, but not limited to:
• African Diaspora arts in Latin America, particularly Cuba
• race and visual arts, literature, theatre, music, dance, and film
• race and audiovisuals and films
• religión and arts
• the magic space of ritual and theater
• storytelling and performance
• dialogue between the arts
• dialogue between the arts and social and political contexts

We welcome individual proposals or panels of 3-4 participants. Proposals can be in English or Spanish. They should include: title, description of paper (under 250 words), name of presenter including affiliation and contact information. Each presentation will be limited to 20 minutes. Proposals will be peer reviewed.

The deadline for submission is November 15th, 2020. Anyone wishing to present a paper may submit a proposal via this form. [https://missouri.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_0GKaf25E2EqFzXD] Applicants will be notified by December 15th, 2020. Approved presenters must confirm their attendance by registering for the conference no later than January 24, 2021. The conference fee is $140.00 for faculty and $50 for students, which includes presentation of papers, admittance to the exhibitions, and all conference activities including performances, documentary screenings, and other events.
Check our website later this month for updated information on the conference. [https://cvent.me/ebPZKL]

For content information, please contact Dr. Juanamaría Cordones-Cook, Project Director at cordonescookj@missouri.edu.