Playbuilding as Qualitative Research: The Play

Cast Ron: A book reviewer Joe: A book author Ron: (standing in the center of the stage, holding a book in one hand, and holding his head with his other hand) Joe, you really need to stop messing with my head. Joe: (entering from stage left) Whatever do you mean? Ron: It's your new book, Playbuilding as Qualitative Research (Norris, 2010); it's got me thinking too much. Joe: Thinking about what? Ron: About what I think research is, about what I think research does. Joe: That's great to hear, Ron, because that's one of the reasons I wrote the book. Ron: To make me suffer? Joe: No, to get folks like you to think about how they think about research. And for that matter, I want to get folks thinking about art too. And maybe, just maybe, that research and art can be the same thing. How's your head feeling now? Ron: It's still spinning, but I think the direction changed. Joe: You're strange, Ron. Ron: I've heard that before! Joe: Well, Ron, since you're such a nice guy to review my new book, I think I should help you with your head-spinning condition and share a little about Playbuilding and how I think it can be used to understand qualitative research and to open up readers' eyes to see how a collaborative arts-based research approach can be evocative and healing. Ron: Wow, all of that is in this one book? Joe: Yes, and more! Ron: Okay, let me hear your best pitch! (Ron sits down on a bench and Joe moves to center stage) Joe: Well, I was first introduced to playbuilding or, as it is more commonly known, "Collective Creation" back in the 1970s, and I fell in love with the approach because it helped me to find a way to create a different relationship between my students and me and between us and our audiences. It also helped me to see that we could blur the distinctions between who was the author and who was the actor, and in some cases who was the audience. It liberated us from our hardened categories of who's who and most interesting of all it was a very creative way of being creative! Ron: Yes, I liked that part of the book especially how it seemed everywhere you went after grad school someone wanted you to put on a play in some form or another. You seemed to be in one of those Judy Garland-Mickey Rooney movies! Joe: Well, Busby Berkeley I ain't (Joe feigns some dance steps), but the feel's the same. It's exciting to work creatively, especially when that collaboration can help people find a voice and that performance can help to bring focus to personally and socially critical issues such as prejudice and oppression. Ron: Okay, that's when collective creation became "Mirror Theatre" -sort of like the same turn qualitative researchers take when they see who and what they study can bring attention to marginalized groups or to folks who have been silenced in some manner. Joe: So, you did read the book! Ron: Yeah, sometimes I do read the books I review! (spoken with sarcasm) Joe: Well, then you already know that the series of projects I did as a part of the "Safe and Caring Schools" initiative in Canada helped me to see the power in playbuilding and performance. This process also led me to see how much stronger presenting the results of our work in the form of a play seemed when compared to disseminating the results of research as a paper or chapter. The form in which the information is presented can amplify the material, engage the audience, and in some instances, can say as much as the content being presented! Ron: Sort of like presenting the review of a book about plays in the form of a play! (Ron and Joe look out to the audience with strange smiles on their faces) Joe: Yeah, who would do something as obvious as that! Ron: Not me (He says with an innocent look) Joe: Well, where were we? …