Autobiography and Identity. Performance as Research

Which aspects of cultural and personal identity most influence current theatrical creation? How are certain signs of identity configured in a mise-enscène and how does the audience perceive them? How can artistic research inform a doctoral study on identity? The thesis project “Identity Configurations in the Contemporary Experimental Basque Theatre Scene” is developed based on these questions with a cross-disciplinary framework that encompasses the historical, sociological, psychological and anthropological approach to the object of study plus comparative case studies and, among them, the PhD candidate’s own artistic research.

The article focuses on comparing two examples that highlight certain identity aspects relevant to the subject and the methodological approach of the doctoral thesis project. I will compare the experimental work of two women: Rakel Mazón and her durational performance Raketa Brokobitx on the rocks and Rakel Ezpeleta, the writer, and her contemporary cabaret Erbeste. Although very formally different, these two pieces share some characteristics: a questioning of the identity of their creators, the use of an alter ego to overcome traumatic experiences related to their experience as women, and the empowerment of the actresses — now authors — through the direct interaction with the audience.

These cases will be used to reflect on cultural identity and the personal, related to a certain feminist and de-colonialising criticism. Moreover, these ideas are linked to the pertinence of Performance as Research (PaR) as the ideal methodological focus to confront the conceptual challenges of an open project like this.