*CFP* "REVISITING THE WARRIOR PRINCESS AND HER LEGACY: XENA 20 YEARS ON", VIRTUAL CONFERENCE

Revisiting the Warrior Princess and her legacy: Xena, 20 years on

18th and 19th June 2021

Virtual Conference

 

On 18th June 2021 it will be twenty years since the controversial final episode of ground-breaking television series Xena: Warrior Princess, ‘A Friend in Need Part II’ aired. Although the series was first conceived as a spin-off from a series featuring a male hero, Hercules The Legendary Journeys, Xena's popularity surpassed that of Hercules, and ran for six seasons from 1995-2001. Xena paved the way for subsequent action heroines, from Buffy in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, who reached our television screens in 1997, to the re-envisioned Wonder Woman in the recent blockbuster films. The (initially subtextual) relationship between Xena and Gabrielle also influenced the depiction of LGBT relationships in popular culture. Xena garnered a large fan base and spawned an interest in the ancient world for a generation of young viewers.

This virtual conference aims to bring together scholars from across a range of disciplines to mark the 20th anniversary of the end of Xena: Warrior Princess and explore different aspects of the series and its

impact. The organisers aim to publish selected papers following the conference.

Possible topics might include (but are not limited to):

• Xena and the representation of ancient civilisations
• Xena and historical events/characters
• Xena and historical women warriors
• Xena and mythology/religion
• Xena and queer theory
• Xena and feminism
• Xena as action heroine
• Xena and television studies
• Xena and fan studies
• Xena tie-ins (comics, novels, etc)
• The legacy of Xena

Please submit abstracts of circa 300 words, together with details of academic background, to amandapotter@caramanda.co.uk and anise.strong@wmich.edu by 15th March 2021.