In this talk, Mariken Lauvstad asks key questions for cross- and intercultural theatre production in our globalised world. How aware is the Western theatre apparatus of its Eurocentric worldview? When Western theatres produce performances portraying or representing minorities, do they unintentionally reproduce the us-them dichotomy? If so, how can one challenge the us-them binary rather than reproduce it? How can we redistribute and equalise the power between the dominant and subordinate culture in Western theatre and performance production? Which stories are children and young audiences told about people from different parts of the world? Who has the right to represent whom – and how/why?
Lauvstad invites her audience to join her in the imagining of new production structures and alternative dramaturgies, with an emphasis on North-South collaborations. Starting with a brief introduction on the relation between social constructs, the history of Othering and the Western theatre production hierarchy, she proceeds to look at how new alternative dramaturgies emerging today may function as different forms of ‘counter-othering’. Lauvstad gives examples of recent productions that stand out as particularly successful, presents her own research findings, and finishes with an open conversation with the audience.
Mariken Lauvstad is a Norwegian Theatre Educator, Writer, and Dramaturg. Drawing from her experience from three and a half years living in South Africa and her MA in International Dramaturgy from the University of Cape Town, Lauvstad is currently specialising in issues related to cultural translation and the representation of minorities in the Performing Arts. Lauvstad has broad experience in Theatre for Children and Young People, both as an Actress and as a Teacher/Theatre Maker. She holds an acting degree in Performance Theatre from the School of Stage Arts in Denmark (2006) and a postgraduate diploma in theatre pedagogy from the Norwegian Academy of the Arts (2013).
