My third day at Cradle of Creativity was spent focusing on the sharing of stories.
Firstly, during the morning plenary at City Hall, I listened to Dr Vicensia Shule (University of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania) speaking about her research on the interplay between music videos and traditional dances for Young Audiences. I also took part in a workshop by the Secret Dramaturgical Society entitled, How We Speak About Theatre for Young Audiences. Finally, I witnessed and took part in the Project21 exhibition, created by Swiss Artist Mats Staub.
What follows are some of the most interesting things I heard and discussed during the day.
On Theatre…
“Theatre has continued to be the voice of the voiceless.” – Dr Vicensia Shule, Department of Creative Arts, University of Dar es Salaam
“I think it’s a good thing that people show awareness of how productions fit into society.” – Workshop Participant
On how we speak about Theatre…
“I think it is a bad thing to assume that the person listening is academically informed to engage and contribute significantly.” – Workshop Participant
On Conversations and Stories…
“Interviews are often about taking. This project focuses on conversations, which is about giving.” – Mats Staub, Artist
“With one ear you listen to stories of complete strangers, with the other ear you are listening to yourself.” – Mats Staub, Artist
“Telling a story can be a transformative and healing moment. We often don’t have these opportunities in our lives. It can be powerful for participants, but it can also be powerful to listen to these stories.” – Maya Marie, Artist