Articles
Diversity, opportunities and challenges of inclusive theatre
Authors:
Jeannette Nijkamp ,
Rotterdam University of Applied Sciences, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
About Jeannette
Researcher on culture and participation
Mieke Cardol
Rotterdam University of Applied Sciences, Research Centre Innovations in Care, Rotterdam, The Netherlands, NL
About Mieke
Professor of Disability Studies; diversity in participation
Abstract
Many initiatives including theatre projects with disabled and non-disabled actors
aim at increasing the inclusion of people with intellectual disabilities. We took
theatre as the context to learn about these inclusive practices. We searched the
scientific literature for case studies to investigate: 1) What can inclusive theatre
performances look like?, 2) Which factors stimulate or hinder working inclusively
within a theatre?, and 3) How are inclusive theatre performances looked upon?
Overall, inclusive theatre can take various forms, however realising inclusive
collaboration between actors with and without disability is not easy. Based on
the findings, it appears that participants of inclusive theatre without disabilities
need to be open to the different modes of expression of their colleagues with
disabilities, and to value this expression and provide room for it. All participants
with and without disabilities together need to develop new ways of working and
co-creating, resulting in new skills and views. Inclusive theatre productions can
make people think differently about ability and normality, while at the same time
having aesthetic power, but it is still controversial to consider these productions
as art instead of as social projects. It is important to realise that inclusive theatre
implies changes for every participant, just as an inclusive society would.
How to Cite:
Nijkamp, J. and Cardol, M., 2020. Diversity, opportunities and challenges of inclusive theatre. Journal of Social Inclusion, 11(2), pp.20–32.
Published on
11 Nov 2020.
Peer Reviewed
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