Cross-disciplinary Research in the South: Weaving a Tapestry of Theatre, History, and Art

Abstract

This paper is a case study of cross-disciplinary research outside “immediate” discipline/specialty—theatre conducted in May 2018 by the cooperation of Denise Harrison, an English/Pan African Studies professor and also a quilt artist. This research was a five-day research trip to Gee’s Bend (currently called Boykin), Selma, and Montgomery, Alabama. This paper examines this trip’s cross-disciplinary and experiential values; I will specifically investigate how this type of experiential and cross-disciplinary research serves as a multifaceted scholarly and educational synergy integrating theatre, history, performance, activism, art, and culture in order to bring new perspectives and ideas onto the research and teaching platform. The critical points in my presentation include (1) The importance of cross-disciplinary studies, (2) History (including the period of the civil rights movement) of Gee’s Bend and their quilts, (3) Elyzabeth Gregory Wilder’s play entitled Gee’s Bend (premiered at the Alabama Shakespeare Festival in 2007) and her dramaturgical integration of history of Gee’s Bend, (4) Other key cultural relativisms and places during the trip that informed me of the depth and scope of history of the United States and the examination of how they can serve as “performative” sites; and (5) In what way researchers and educators can apply cross-disciplinary research (in this case experiential) to further scholarship and teaching.