One the Bear: A postcolonial radical hip hop herstory

ABSTRACT

This article explores the theatrical power and politics of a new Australian production called One the Bear by Candy Bowers and the Black Honey Company. This high-energy, magic realist hip-hop fairy tale sought to decolonize the TFY space by speaking out about the experiences, stories, and identities of First Nations women through its masterful use of allegory, music, dance, and rhyme. Informed by radical feminist and postcolonial politics, this game-changing production burst onto the Australian TFY scene, pushing the boundaries of form, style, and message to reposition audiences within complex narratives of oppression and power. It offers a multitude of provocations to young and old audiences to reconsider the impacts of colonization and how it shapes the present and the future.