Unsettling Narratives Through Performativity and Theatre Workshops
October 15, 2024
Title: Unsettling Narratives Through Performativity and Theatre Workshops
This residency will focus on exploring how dominant cultural narratives are embedded within institutional and cultural archives, using performance as a tool to deconstruct and reframe these narratives. Drawing on decolonial theory, the project will engage with local communities to reclaim their stories and identities through creative practices that challenge colonial histories.
The primary goal of my project, which is an effort that will work toward my dissertation, is to examine how dominant narratives are constructed and maintained by society and how they can be challenged through performative, artistic, and archival practices. My research focuses on the intersection of decolonial theory, Indigenous methodologies, ethnographic performance, and creative or artistic forms. Specifically, my dissertation asks:
- How are dominant societal narratives shaped and sustained through cultural, academic, and institutional archives?
- In what ways can performance, particularly theatre, plays, and the arts, serve as a catalyst to unsettle and subvert these dominant narratives?
- How can students/communities reclaim and reframe their identities in ways that challenge colonial and oppressive histories?
My project draws on Indigenous research methodologies, community projects, and performative knowledge systems of Indigenous people, highlighting how knowledge is passed through embodied practices. At the heart of this inquiry is a commitment to unsettle dominant research methods, unsettle colonial knowledge production, and highlight marginalized perspectives.
Contact Info
keola.kinghorn@utah.eduAbout the Project
Collaborators
Project Lead
Keolanani Kinghorn
Unsettling Narratives Through Performativity and Theatre Workshops
University of Utah
Geography
Utah