Consent-Based Theatre Pedagogy: Anti-Oppressive Practices for Youth Performance

Consent-based performance practices have been widely discussed in recent years–specifically those practices related to the staging of intimacy in live performance and in film. While scholarship dedicated to the practices, theories, and politics of consent in theatrical and cinematic labor continues to accumulate, the use of consent-based practices in theatrical settings to impact the artistic and social-emotional learning of youth remains largely underexplored.

Accepted for publication by Routledge, Consent-Based Theatre Pedagogy: Anti-Oppressive Practices for Youth Performance will provide an innovative examination of the rich yet underexamined intersection of consent-based performance pedagogy. For the purposes of this manuscript, we define consent-based pedagogy as a framework of teaching practices developed to interrupt unethical use of hierarchical structures and to empower individuals to develop and articulate personal boundaries. Consent-based pedagogy is informed by the most recent research and application of theories related to fully-informed consent and anti-oppressive practice. This edited collection seeks to provide theories and tools that theatre educators, directors, and artists can weave into their own practice to empower the young people with whom they work. This collection will feature three sections: 

• Theoretical Analysis of Consent-Based Pedagogy (chapters of 2,000-4,000 words); 

• Lesson Plans and Activities (capped at 700 words); and 

• Production Processes and Case Studies (capped at 1,200 words). 

This call is specifically seeking contributions to section 1. Calls for Section 2 and 3 are also available. See the full call at https://docs.google.com/document/d/1wRygXlmcS9y3nTD1ZIa6ahlQezdeleDO9hfo...

Section 1: Analysis of Consent-Based Practices as Pedagogy. 

This section will explore the ways in which consent-based practices support and align with anti-oppressive pedagogical theories and approaches, arguing that consent-based practices support students’ social-emotional learning and cognitive development, as well as being effective pedagogy for theatrical classrooms. 

Chapters in this section should engage with interdisciplinary scholarly research to present the outcomes of consent-based pedagogy in 2,000-4,000 words, inclusive of footnotes and bibliography. Chapters already scheduled for inclusion highlight Stages of Development; Current Gaps in Stated Curricular Outcomes and Practice; and the parallels between consent-based practice and universal design learning. The editors are seeking additional chapters for this section and have a particular interest in chapters that explore:

• The intersection of consent-based approaches to pedagogy and anti-oppressive practices

• Differentiation and scaffolding in consent-based pedagogy and practice 

• Analysis of consent-based pedagogy as student-centered pedagogy 

• Analysis of potential impacts of learning about consent through a theatrical framing

Timeline

This work is under contract with Routledge, and we are anticipating the following timeline:

• Abstracts for proposals should be submitted by Monday, January 22, 2024.

• Contributors who wish to engage in peer feedback should submit their manuscripts by May 3, 2024. 

• Peer support conversations are invited to take place throughout May, providing authors time for revising and incorporating feedback.

• All manuscripts should be submitted to the editors on a rolling deadline with an end date of July 12, 2024.

• Revised manuscripts should be submitted to the editors by September 6, 2024.

Submission Guidelines

To submit, please send your abstract as a word document or PDF to amandarosevillarreal@gmail.com by January 22, 2024 with a document title including your name and the section number you wish your proposal to be considered for (ie “Villarreal_Section2”. This email should include:

• Title of the submitted chapter, lesson plan, activity, or case study 

• Abstract of up to 200 words in word document or pdf format

• Author bio of up to 100 words 

• Subject line including the words “Consent-Based Theatre Pedagogy”