Looking for a word to describe several short discussions or presentations in a row
There are words that mean exactly this.
- Symposium
A formal meeting at which several specialists deliver short addresses on a topic or on related topics
- Colloquium
A usually academic meeting at which specialists deliver addresses on a topic or on related topics and then answer questions relating to them
In my experience both these words are primarily used in an academic setting, but I don't see any reason why they couldn't be used more generally.
Lightning Talks -- In many professional conference presentations there are sessions called Lightning Talks. I belong to the Society for Technical Communication and we have one of these sessions at each of our conferences (Summit). They are very popular with attendees and speakers because they force the speaker to make their topic clear and to the point and makes the attendees listen more attentively. A lightning talk is generally a 5 minute presentation and may include performances, slides, audience participation, etc. Another benefit of a Lightning Talk session is that it lets more speakers participate at a conference.
For additional information about Lightning Talks, see the Wikipedia entry at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lightning_talk