“This is not a costume, it’s public humanities”
Friday April 10, 9 am – 3 pm
Cleone Peterson Eccles Alumni House
Both campy and analytical, this symposium moves from close reading to collective watching.
Scholars and fans from the Salt Lake Valley and across the country gather for a day of lively discussion, appreciation, and spectacle. We will ask what The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City reveals about fame, faith, femininity, conflict, fashion, and the art of performance.
At the University of Utah, the Tanner Humanities Center is committed to serious thinking about popular culture—and to the pleasure of thinking together.
Attendees are welcome to arrive in their best Housewives costume fashion.
Companion events
The night before · Thursday, April 9, 6 pm:
RHOSLC Trivia Night at Blue Gene’s
Hosted by Amplify Utah and Questionable Productions
Limited capacity. First-come, first serve.
After the symposium · Reserved space at 4 pm:
Gathering at Franklin Ave Cocktails & Kitchen
(true fans know what happened here)
Welcome and stage-setting
Snowflakes, Scandal, and Sisterhood
Housewives U: Core Curriculum
“I'm Disengaging”: A Couples Therapist’s Guide to Communication on RHOSLC · Jordan Rullo
From Saints to Sinners: Tales of Dating and Marriage From Within the Hive · The Salty Hoes
Housewives U: Electives
Talking Back at The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City · Ali Alkhalifa
Rented Revelations: Housewives, Crickets, and Empty Walls · Julia Soule and Li Murphy
The Function of Fashion in The Real Housewives of SLC · Rachel White
Lunch (on your own)
Return from lunch for Salt Lake Acting Company performance
Housewives U: Extracurriculars
Stuck in Time? What AI Baby Parodies May Reveal about RHOSLC, and Us · Crystal Rudds
The Cult Canonization of The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City · Alexandra Docherty
Mormon Multiverse: How Reality TV Reveals a Spectrum of Faith Practice and Accelerates Identity Negotiation · Cassie Bingham
How we watch after school
The Ethics of Shade: Probity, Gossip, and Connection in Real Housewives of Salt Lake City Fan Communities
Salt Lake Acting Company Performance
The Tanner Humanities Center is grateful for the support of these co-sponsors
Views expressed in Tanner Humanities Center events do not reflect the official views of the Center or the University of Utah.