Re-imagining the efficacy of documentary theatre for conflict transformation

: utopian performatives for developing the moral imagination

Abstract

Effective methods of evaluation are essential when determining the success of a social development project. However, traditional evaluation methods of projects or initiatives within fields of arts and/or peacebuilding have proved troublesome for a variety of reasons. This includes evaluations that reinforce the liberal peacebuilding dynamic or quantitative evaluations that are not equipped to deal with the nuanced impacts that come with ‘arts’ projects. Ultimately, these issues become even more complex when evaluating a project that could be considered as arts for peacebuilding.

The study focuses specifically on documentary theatre for conflict transformation (DTCT) in Northern Ireland as since the signing of the Good-Friday Agreement in 1998, DTCT has been one of the most popular methods in relation to artistic expressions relating to ongoing legacy and post-conflict issues.

This interdisciplinary doctoral study seeks to develop a unique methodology to effectively evaluate arts for peacebuilding projects. The methodology includes a major focus of a workshop performance that took place in October 2021 as the study analyses audience impacts at an in-depth phenomenological level. The results of this methodology are at the core of the thesis and are assisted by insights from key stakeholders from victims and survivor, funding and theatre organisations, along with participant-actors from various projects that utilise the Theatre of Witness methodology. Since funding became more readily available as part of the overall peace process, the upsurge in documentary theatre performances in NI relating to the conflict.

The findings and recommendations for this doctoral study, suggest that traditional methods of evaluating DTCT in Northern Ireland are inadequate. The lack of long-term impact assessments within this field is a major issue for understanding any transformation experienced. Similar to the critiques surrounding orthodox Peace and Conflict Impact Assessments (PCIA) that reinforce the liberal peacebuilding dynamic, evaluations of DTCT need more involvement at the grassroots level of society in order for them to develop their own outcomes in terms of peace. Also, the difficulties in evaluating the complex nature of DTCT due to subjective impacts mean that the over-reliance on transferable methods of assessment are insufficient.

Date of Award	Oct 2023
Original language	English
Sponsors	Department for the Economy
Supervisor	Johanne Devlin Trew (Supervisor), Lisa Fitzpatrick (Supervisor) & Maire Braniff (Supervisor)