Monsters lurk in our culture. They rise in times of growing prejudice, discrimination and othering. The 2023 Festival of Monsters (Oct. 13-15) — hosted by the UC Santa Cruz Center for Monster Studies — explores the ways monsters and tropes of monstrosity both preserve and conflict with forms of social and cultural injustice.
Held in two locations in beautiful Santa Cruz, Calif, the 2023 Festival includes a free public day and a paid academic conference, with performances, readings, presentations from monster-makers, and an exhibit at the Santa Cruz Museum of Art and History (MAH) entitled Werewolf Hunters, Jungle Queens, and Space Commandos: The Lost Worlds of Women Comics Artists.
Authors Mallory O'Meara (The Lady from the Black Lagoon) and Jess Zimmerman (Women and Other Monsters) will give the keynote talks. Author Addie Tsai (Unwieldy Creatures) will read and discuss her book, which is a queer, nonbinary, biracial retelling of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein.
On Friday, Oct. 13, the in-person festival begins at the Museum of Art and History with a full day of free public events including a panel with Black Nerds Create, a talk with the creators of Theater of Terror, Addie Tsai's reading, a Q&A and mask display by locally-owned Trick or Treat Studios, Mallory O'Meara's keynote and the opening of the exhibit.
On Saturday, Oct. 14, the academic conference continues with all-day panels on monstrous topics at UCSC's Digital Arts Research Center (DARC) capped by the evening Monsters Ball Costume Party at the Institute of the Arts & Sciences. Make sure and bring a costume! The conference ends Sunday, Oct. 15, at the DARC with final panels and performances.
We strive to be inclusive. All of our locations are wheelchair accessible and have handicapped parking nearby. Our conference menus include gluten-free and vegan options.
Sponsors include the Arts Research Institute of UC Santa Cruz, UC Santa Cruz Arts Division, The Humanities Institute at UC Santa Cruz, Porter College, the UC Santa Cruz Foundation Board and private donors. Additional support provided by Bookshop Santa Cruz and Trick or Treat Studios. The 2023 Festival of Monsters is part of National Arts and Humanities Month.
FESTIVAL LIVESTREAM: Livestreams of both keynote speeches can be seen here. Mallory O’Meara’s keynote takes place Friday, Oct. 13, at 4 p.m. Pacific Daylight Time. Jess Zimmerman’s keynote takes place Saturday, Oct. 14, at 3:45 p.m. Pacific Daylight Time. Videos of the panels available after the Festival on our YouTube channel.
