Teesri Duniya Theatre: Diversifying diversity with relevant works of theatre

Abstract

Teesri Duniya Theatre produces politically relevant theatre about a number of uncommon and contentious issues. Its plays rely on everyday cultural experiences acquired within the local cultural milieu. This approach involves a deliberate distancing from the culture of origin and, at the same time, a resistance to cultural homogenization. A dialogic exchange ensues that includes an examination of critical social issues and relationships with the dominant culture(s), as well as a questioning of cultural orthodoxy from within diverse cultural communities. This paper discusses the material conditions (funding and company structure) that affect Teesri Duniya's work. It also addresses the relationship between art and society through a discussion of selected images and texts from Teesri Duniya productions. Teesri Duniya Theatre has demonstrated that a politically engaged theatre that examines critical and contentious issues, and builds solidarity among cultures, can represent the cultural identities of visible minorities as well as express the relationships between cultures.

Notes

^1. Visible minorities, as defined by the Employment Equity Act, are members of ethnic minority groups that are ‘persons, other than Aboriginal peoples, who are non-Caucasian in race or non-white in colour’ (Statistics Canada).