Shattering the Fourth Wall: Meaningful Participation in Live Interpretation

Shattering the Fourth Wall

Meaningful Visitor Participation in

Live Interpretation

Presenters: Andrea Jones (Childress) – Free agentCatherine Hughes – Connor Prairie

Participation is everywhere . . .

What are the positive effects of participation?

Let’s see for ourselves . . .

Let’s go back to our list

What are the positive effects of participation? Keeping attention/heightened awareness

Fun/Novelty/Surprise

Feeling part of something bigger than self

Emotional reaction

Increased recall (memory) of performance

Increased recall of content within performance

Engendering empathy between disparate groups

Freedom RidersOne of Three Simulations in “Fight For Your Rights” School ProgramAtlanta History CenterGrades 3 - 12

Freedom Riders

Freedom Riders

“The BEST thing about this play is that it is participatory.

The audience becomes a part of history!”

“The performance stirs emotions and makes the audience question what

they know about Atlanta history- for better or worse.”

“The sis and I were both black, so it was interesting to walk in the shoes that our 80+ year old grandmother still tells us about to

this day.”

Back to our list . . .

Designing Participation for EffectWhat effects will come from these examples?

When we see Mr. Litter bug we’re

going to shout “Give a hoot, don’t

pollute!”

Audience uses frog

noisemakers to simulate rainforest

sound

“I need a volunteer to help with my

science experiment!”

Visitors in a Trail of Tears simulation makes a group decision about whether to leave their

home territory.

Visitors interact with 1st person

interpreters and

discuss historic

farm tasks

A slave trader debates with the

audience to defend his profession

Students act out a scene depicted in a

famous painting

Pyramid of Meaningful Participation*

LessMeaningful

MoreMeaningful

* this is not an exact science

Call and Response

Role Playing with Decision Making

Debate/Discussion

Volunteering

Tenets of Meaningful Participation

Changes Perspective

Triggers Emotion

Provokes Thought

Does less meaningful participation have a purpose?

YES! But it’s not the END GOAL.

This is only the

beginning of the discussion

Slide show available on slideshare.net

(Search: “Shattering the Fourth Wall”)

Contact us:[email protected]@connorprairie.org