Oral History and Performance

The work of the group will result in the creation of performance projects in collaboration with community groups and through a special community artist-in-residence program, publication of research about the process of creating performance from oral history, and the development of ethical, aesthetic and methodological guidelines which will be documented in written reports and presented at conferences to disseminate the work of the group and to enable the duplication of the program in other communities. The group will also assemble examples of research and creation generated by the project into an anthology for publication.

Our Projects

The Oral History and Performance Working Group draws inspiration from participatory action methodologies to involve participants in socially engaged and self-revelatory performances by, for, and about their respective communities. The Working Group will help guide the creation of performance projects in collaboration with community groups, the publication of research about the process of creating performances based on oral histories, and the development of ethical, aesthetic and methodological guidelines which will be documented in written reports and presented at conferences. The Working Group will assemble examples of research and creation generated by the project into an anthology for publication. The Oral History and Performance Working Group will also collect 28 life story interviews with artists who are living in Montreal because they were displaced from their places of origin by mass violence.