Devising in Hawaiʻi: The Efficacy of a Eurocentric Methodology With BIPOC Students

Abstract

Devised theatre has been praised for celebrating cultural differences as assets, and boasts a flexibility and adaptability of form that suggest a formidable tool for creative expression and education in an increasingly shifting and unpredictable world. However, the reality is that devising comes from a Eurocentric theatre tradition and most professional devised theatre companies in the United States today are made up of a majority of White practitioners. In this article, I discuss my experience devising with Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander, and Asian American students on O’ahu, and based on the gathered data, I make the argument that a devised theatre process aimed at giving its participants as much control as possible can benefit BIPOC communities under the right circumstances.