Summerskill, ‘The importance of being gay’, 2018

Category: Literature
Source: Other
Subject: Sexual Orientation/Sexuality, Gender Identity, Intersex, Refugee/Asylum, LGBT+
Place: United Kingdom
Year: 2018
URL: https://doi.org/10.1080/13569783.2018.1438178

Clare Summerskill, ‘The importance of being gay: the perils and possibilities of LGBTI asylum seekers’ involvement in Rights of Passage’, 2018 Research in Drama Education: The Journal of Applied Theatre and Performance, 23:2, 282-288

Abstract

In order to claim asylum in the UK, lesbians and gay men are required to ‘prove’ their sexual orientation during an interview, demonstrating the dangers that their sexuality poses for them in their countries of origin. Playwrights who create verbatim theatre addressing LGBTI asylum issues will also interview contributors eliciting personal testimony, and such work may mirror or re-trigger some of the more traumatic aspects of previous interviews. Focussing on Rights of Passage (2016), this article examines how the positionality of the playwright/interviewer and the identity of the audience can refigure the ethical terrain of verbatim theatre processes.

Keywords: Verbatim theatre, LGBTI, asylum seekers, ethics