Princeton Stories: Political Activism Through Ethnographic Theater

Abstract

Both anthropology and theater are modes of storytelling. I wrote a play based on anthropological research, in the form of a choreopoem. A choreopoem is a black art form coined by Ntozake Shange that involves performance of poetry, dance, music, and song. Using ethnographic research methods, particularly participant observation, I explored socio-political theories concerning black womanhood in weekly play-devising workshops with a diverse cast of nine people. Our workshops were meant to engage with the experiences of black female students at Princeton, offering a spectrum of stories and perspectives. The choreopoem was named A Spectrum Unspoken by my co-devisors and I in order to highlight the array of voices in the cast as well as the newness of the language. The play would cover controversial topics in a personal manner, things that usually remained unspoken. It was staged in the Wallace Theater at the Lewis Center for the Arts in March 2019.