Find a home, lose a home: A research-based theatre journey into Acadian heritage

Authors

  • Tetsuro Shigematsu University of Fraser Valley
  • Eva Göksel Independent Scholar
  • Erika Piazzoli Trinity College Dublin
  • George Belliveau University of British Columbia
  • Philippe Naud Professional Artist

Keywords:

arts-based research, research-based theatre, applied theatre, butoh, process drama, language portrait

Abstract

“Meet me in France to help me encounter my Acadian ancestors.” The Acadians were French settlers who established a unique culture in Atlantic Canada before being forcibly removed by the British in the 18th century. Taking up the invitation, five disparate artist/scholars gathered in France, but all their approaches would fit under the bigger tent of Research-based Theatre (RbT), an arts-based methodology in which embodied performances are created through the systematic research of real-life events and social issues. How does RbT serve to help us navigate the liminal space between research questions and the creation of theatre itself? If RbT is a term that encompasses a variety of approaches, how would grafting disparate artistic techniques transform our understandings of research?

Author Biographies

Tetsuro Shigematsu, University of Fraser Valley

is a playwright/performer. He was the first person of color to host a daily national radio program in Canada. His acclaimed solo works include Empire of the Son and 1 Hour Photo.

Eva Göksel, Independent Scholar

has a background both in broadcasting and in education. She has taught in multiple languages, as well as training teachers. Her work explores performative teaching and learning including drama, storytelling, and listening.

Erika Piazzoli, Trinity College Dublin

is a researcher and lecturer in arts education with a background in process drama and Butoh. She teaches Embodying Language, Master in Language Education.

George Belliveau, University of British Columbia

is Professor of Drama/Theatre Education at the University of British Columbia. He has led or collaborated on over a dozen Research-based Theatre projects and leads UBC’s Research-based Theatre Lab. 

Philippe Naud, Professional Artist

He masters drawing, painting, theatre, directing, mime, and sculpture. But today, it is the magic of colors that draws him in: namely, in the form of painting. From now on, the artist is fully devoted to freely expressing his inner landscapes through his art.

References

Belliveau, G., & Lea, G. (Eds.) (2016). Research-based theatre: An artistic methodology. Intellect.

Belliveau, G. & Sinclair, C. (2018). Touchstones of practice: Consideration from the theatre workshop floor. In P. Duffy, C. Hatton, & R. Sallis (Eds.) Drama Research Methods: Provocations of Practice (pp 3-18). Brill/Sense Publishers.

Boal, A. (2005). Games for actors and non-actors. Routledge.

Kusters, A., & De Meulder, M. (2019). Language portraits: Investigating embodied multilingual and multimodal repertoires. Qualitative Social Research, 20(3), 10.

Shigematsu, T., Lea, G. W., Cook, C., & Belliveau, G. (2022). A spotlight on research-based theatre. LEARNing Landscapes, 15(1), 349-365. https://doi.org/10.36510/learnland.v15i1.1081

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Published

2025-05-31

How to Cite

Shigematsu, T., Göksel, E., Piazzoli, E., Belliveau, G., & Naud, P. (2025). Find a home, lose a home: A research-based theatre journey into Acadian heritage. McGill Journal of Education / Revue Des Sciences De l’éducation De McGill, 59(1), 178–194. Retrieved from https://mje.mcgill.ca/article/view/10301