Sing for your Supper: Pauperism, Performance, and Survival

This article presents a critical reflection on a research performance entitled 'The House', devised and performed by Carran Waterfield, in collaboration with researcher Jenny Hughes. The performance drew on historical research into welfare regimes past and present, as well as a history of engagement in welfare regimes dating back to the New Poor Law (1834) in the female lineage of Carran's ancestry. Framed around 10 photographs from the performance, and taking the form of a dialogue between performer and researcher, the article explores lines of resistance to punitive practices of welfare discovered in performance, and reflects on how performance is problematically implicated in disciplinary measures focused on conferring value in accordance with economised measures of productivity.