Wall of whiteness: applied theatre and institutional life

This essay urges the field of applied theatre to extend its critical focus to examine how whiteness differentially shapes our institutional homes, scholarship, and creative practice. Drawing from Sara Ahmed's (2012) notion of 'institutional life', the essay takes readers into my academic home at the University of Missouri, a predominantly white public institution in the middle of the US, to examine my direction of a critical performance effort, The Revolutionists Project. Throughout the essay, I show how a wall of whiteness shaped the design of the performance project and, as such, worked to obstruct critical conversations about racism and institutional life.

Automated summary

This essay calls for the field of applied theatre to expand its critical perspective and examine how whiteness influences institutional homes, scholarship, and creative practice. Using Sara Ahmed's (2012) concept of 'institutional life', the essay analyzes the author's experience at the predominantly white University of Missouri, where they directed a critical performance effort called The Revolutionists Project. Throughout the essay, the author demonstrates how whiteness obstructed discussions about racism and institutional life, shaping the design of the performance project.