PERFORMANCE FOR ETHNOGRAPHY, DIALOGUE, AND INTERVENTION : USING ACTIVATING THEATRE TO EXPLORE THE REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH ISSUES FACING KENYAN ADOLESCENT GIRLS

Abstract

This thesis explores the utility of using performance, specifically activating theatre, both as a reproductive health intervention and as an ethnographic tool for exploring the reproductive health worldview of 17 adolescent girls, all peer counselors at a state-run all-girl boarding school in Rift Valley Province, Kenya. The study is grounded theoretically in the traditions of action research, critical ethnography, performance theory, and dialogic expression. I facilitated a week-long activating theatre workshop that included warm-ups, bridge work, improvisation, and activating material. The workshop, which was video recorded, was analyzed alongside a reflective journal and audio recorded semi-structured interviews and a post-workshop focus group for core themes and categories using grounded theory. My analysis shows that the use of activating theatre is an effective tool for understanding the reproductive health perceptions of adolescent girls, for encouraging them to openly discuss their reproductive health issues, for increasing their sense of agency, for improving their decision-making skills, and for helping them critically assess the social and historical roots of reproductive health issues. The project web site which includes workshop video clips is at http://purityjerop.wix.com/kapkenda-performance.