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Storytelling through theatre is a powerful way to reach others.
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We are a research ensemble of diverse collaborators committed to exploring the power of drama to create social change.
In Conversation With
Rethinking Democracy And Citizenship
What does it mean to be democratic? What’s the difference between being a citizen in a democracy and a subject in an empire? Dr. Urvashi Sahni answered these pressing questions and more in her inspiring and truly engaging TEDtalk.
Creators for Change Documentary Wins Emmy for Outstanding Daytime Non-Fiction Special
Dr. Urvashi Sahni and Study Hall Education Foundation (SHEF) are featured in Michelle Obama's "Creators for Change" Documentary showcasing how education can transform girls’ lives and create a ripple effect for communities.
CODE Conversations
See here the launch of CODE Conversations with Matthew Sheahan, secondary teacher from Hastings and Prince Edward District School Board and President of the Council of Ontario Dance and Drama Educators interviewing Andrew Kushnir and Zorana Sadiq on their experiences with the Radical Hope research, the Towards Youth production, and their poignant thoughts on why Verbatim theatre is an especially important aesthetic with young people in these times.
Project: Humanity supporting youth & artists through COVID-19
P:H's COVID-19 Artist Partnership Program (CAPP). provides essential support to youth in shelters by pairing participants with artists for weekly 1:1 online mentorship sessions in a discipline of their choosing.
Tiny Tuna Big Bee: motivating climate action through music
Introducing our friends Bebe, Oona and Tutu of homegrown Toronto band ‘Tiny Tuna Big Bee’, all 12 years old and writing music as a call to action about climate change.
Artists for Real Climate Action
Artists for Real Climate Action is a non-partisan, ever-growing collection of actors, filmmakers, writers, musicians, playwrights, graphic designers, directors, and digital marketing folks all sounding the alarm over our climate crisis
Upcoming Events
- November 25, 2021: Dr. Gallagher and Dr. Urvashi Sahni will present their North-South research and creative collaboration to Global Affairs Canada.
- TBD 2021: Dr. Gallagher will present the keynote address at the 4th ELTE Workshop for Arts Education, Live the Culture – Play, Arts Education and Science (Budapest, Hungary).
Latest News
Building new publics: Using agile, community-engaged, and applied theatre methodologies as social intervention in audience research
In this article, Dr. Kathleen Gallagher, with PhD candidates Lindsay Valve and Christine Balt, illustrate how an ‘agile’ research methodology acts as both inquiry and social intervention, and provides theatre artists and practitioners with novel ways to become more intentional about building engaged, intergenerational audiences.
Vulnerability, care and hope in audience research
In this article, Dr. Kathleen Gallagher, with PhD candidates Christine Balt and Lindsay Valve, consider the theatre as a vital site for the formation of an ‘intergenerational polis’ by looking to how the affective labour performed by a theatre audience creates an ‘ethics of care’, gesturing to the importance of attuning to ‘dissensus’ in audience research.
New Article by Dr. Kathleen Gallagher & Andrew Kushnir in Theatre Research in Canada
Read Dr. Gallagher's new article about the transformation of her 5-year, multi-sited ethnographic research into an original documentary play in collaboration with embedded playwright Andrew Kushnir.
Response to COVID-19 – losing and finding one another in drama: personal geographies, digital spaces and new intimacies
In this article, Dr. Kathleen Gallagher, with graduate students Christine Balt, Nancy Cardwell & Brooke Charlebois, engage with the sudden pivot to online learning and research, revealing a complex portrait of youth, connection, and the digital world at a time of physical distancing; and reflecting on what drama practices might be mobilised to invite intimacy into online learning.
Asia's Most Influential:
Dr. Urvashi Sahni
Congratulations to our collaborator. Dr.Urvashi Sahni, for being named one of Asia’s Most Influential people. Dr. Sahni is a women’s rights activist, CEO and founder of Study Hall Educational Foundation in India, which offers educational programs for vulnerable young people.