Drama in museums
Project: This Accursed Thing
Location: The Manchester Museum
Timing and duration:
Completed as part of the bicentenary celebrations in 2007 to commemorate the abolition of slavery - delivered to groups between March and July 2007.
Project manager:
Pete Brown & Antony Jackson
Target audience:
Key Stage 3 students and independent visitors to The Manchester Museum
Participants:
The Manchester Museum (Pete Brown), University of Manchester Theatre Studies Department (Tony Jackson), University of Manchester Andrew Ashmore & associates (Live Interpretation Company, London) Other Museums in Revealing Histories group (Bolton Museum & Art Gallery, Gallery Oldham, Manchester Art Gallery, Museum of Science and Industry, Touchstone Rochdale, The Whitworth Art Gallery, People's History Museum)
Aim/objectives:
As part of a larger case study by Performance, Learning and Heritage: to determine the effectiveness of performance and related drama activities as a medium of learning and interpretation in museum and heritage settings, This Accursed Thing was designed to test hypotheses emerging from earlier studies at The National Maritime Museum; Llancaiach Fawr Manor; The Herbert and Triangle Theatre Company.
To explore the links that The Manchester Museum's collection has with the Slave trade and the role Manchester played at this time in history.
To use performance as a medium to 'bring to life' the Museum collection and involve visitors/audiences in the stories the collection had to tell.
To allow the audience members to question characters involved and interact with the performance to create relationships with characters and the subject matter.
Description of process:
A partnership developed between The Manchester Museum and the University of Manchester's Theatre department to explore a study on Performance, Learning and Heritage in Museums. A Steering Group was set up and recruited Andrew Ashmore & associates to develop a script for a promenade performance that would fulfil the research aims of the PLH study in addition to being appropriate for public engagement in an open space. Through a programme of community consultation, feedback to performances from CAP, university students and museum staff based on previous research at other venues, the performances were then offered to school groups and the general public (BSL & Audio description was also available). A selection of performances was paid for from the grant brought in by the University's research study while others were subsidised by the Museum.
Impact and evaluation:
The Revealing Histories project culminated in the launch of a website that uses Museum objects from eight museums in Manchester to help tell the story of slavery as it relates to Manchester, that can used by teachers and researchers interested in this topic.
Anthony Jackson and Jennifer Kidd have published on the development and outcome of the joint project based on the research study as well as speaking a number of conferences:
Jenny Kidd, ‘Performance, Learning and Heritage’, Feeling the Vibes: Dealing with Intangible Heritage, Museum Ethnographers Group Conference, Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery, 18 May, 2006 Anthony Jackson and Jenny Kidd, ‘This Accursed Thing: Research into Practice’ at the 5th Biennial IMTAL conference, 20‐23 September, 2007, Belfast.
Anthony Jackson and Jenny Kidd, ‘Performance as a learning medium in museums: does it work?’ at the American Alliance for Theatre and Education conference, Atlanta, 22nd – 27th July, 2008 Pete Brown, Tony Jackson and Jenny Kidd, presentation on the PLH research and its outcomes, at the Museums Association Conference, 6‐8th October 2008, Liverpool Hughes, J, with Kidd, J, and McNamara, C, ‘Applied Theatre: Interdisciplinarity and the research of practice’ in Kershaw, B, and Nicholson, H, Research Methods in Theatre Studies. Edinburgh University Press.
Jackson, A, and Kidd, J, ‘Museum Theatre – cultivating audience engagement’ in the International Drama/Theatre & Education Alliance (IDEA) publication mid-2009.
Jackson, A, and Kidd, J, eds., Performing Heritage: research, practice and development in museum theatre and live interpretation: edited book (including chapters by Baz Kershaw, Laurajane Smith, Catherine Hughes, Mark Fleishman, Jane Malcolm‐Davies), Manchester University Press 2009
Lessons learned:
The model for the promenade performance provided the opportunity to determine how this interactive activity would benefit the audience/visitor. A balance also had to be made between the research aims of the PLH study and the practicalities of performing in an open space that allowed visitors to further engage with the Museum Collection.
Legacy of the project:
Character pieces were adapted and short films were made into an interactive resource for teachers on the Revealing Histories website: www.revealinghistories.org.uk.
University of Manchester's Applied Theatre students utilise the Museum as a resource to discuss Performance in the Learning and Heritage sector.
Links between the University of Manchester Applied Theatre and The Manchester Museum to offer student placements to develop and deliver further performance related pieces inspired by This Accursed Thing (to begin Sept 2011).
