Abstract

This paper examines how discourses of identity are entangled in the production and consumption of hospitality. Data gathered through participant observation of a weekly social event called The Church is used to demonstrate how to its management attempt to mobilise particular myths of antipodean identity to orchestrate ludic consumption experiences. The paper discusses The Church’s operation and examines the performative and material practices involved in the processes of its creation and management. It is argued that identities are entangled in every aspect of The Church: notions of common heritage act as a symbolic focal point for patrons, while stressing notions of similarity and difference alongside inclusion and exclusion through rituals of consumption is essential to its operation. Ongoing attempts by different groups to assert power in the venue and transgressive consumption practices juxtapose national, regional, gendered and sexual identities to generate hybridised antipodean identities, which are central to the production of hospitality in this space.