Museum as counterpublic space: Performing direct testimony

Abstract

Utilitarian and socially engaged, Applied Drama is a theatre domain and umbrella concept associated with social sciences, anthropology and cultural studies among other humanistic disciplines. The practice of Applied Drama has played a significant role in developing community-based interventions, contestations and acts of resistance in the public domain, and politically meaningful interactions between artists and audiences to encourage active citizenship. This article discusses the pursuit of Applied Drama from the public sphere perspective and how these specific theatre methodologies are particularly designed to generate counterdiscourses. I will focus on the role of location/place in attributing meaning to the performance piece and illustrate with a study case how museums can be important arenas for democratic public spheres. I will pose that museums are community spaces able to provide opportunities for multiple identities to create representative discourses. I will also demonstrate how immersivity, guided interaction and simultaneous dramaturgy are key factors in generating counterpublics and alternative political discourses.