Thursday, January 31, 2019
Who is Being Triggered?
HowlRound Theatre Commons: I doubt anyone involved in both theatre and social media has missed out on the perennial fracas over trigger warnings in the theatre, and whether or not our increased sensitivity to trauma and aggression spells doom for the art form. This conversation, though, seems to focus almost solely on the artist-patron relationship and neglects a much more fundamental place where these changes are playing out: our classrooms.
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9 comments:
Honestly consent is such an underrated topic. It does not just apply to sex. It has pretty clear applications in this article. Just because we are becoming more sensitive to other peoples' feelings and recognize that triggers are a thing does not in any way mean that we need to purge triggering content, but instead must actively engage with students and ask for consent when exploring potentially triggering potential. It does not "ruin the moment" to make sure someone is okay with what is happening. I am really glad that people are taking actors into consideration with this stuff and not just the audience. It is something I didn't take into consideration before. Actors are people too and while their ability to portray disturbing situations on stage is part of their job, it does not mean that it cannot be damaging or does not need to be treated carefully. I hope in the future trigger warnings become more common in education.
I think a lot of things in this article are things that were needed to be said in an educational theatre environment. I very much agree with a lot of the things he said about how the job of a teacher is not to force their students into something they are not comfortable for the purposes of learning. I read the comment that was posted on the article on the website and I thought the point she brought up was very interesting. She mentioned that she does not force her students into working with roles and content that they find uncomfortable because if they do not feel as if they can work with that material in a classroom, those are not the kinds of roles those actors will be auditioning for. She also mentioned how she has to change her teaching style for every student because each student is different. I think this idea is one that many teachers need to realize while working with students especially young students.
Consent in the rehearsal room and classroom has been coming more and more to my own personal attention, either by experiencing tough classroom experiences or hearing about it from friends, it's clear that something has to be done about it. With the audience-patron relationship, the trigger warning may be placed and the patron can make an informed decision on whether or not they would like to see the show. In classroom settings though, students may feel pressured to work on pieces that contain content personally disturbing to them. They may also feel that they will not succeed if they do not work on the material. If it is not made explicitly clear through the teacher and teaching atmosphere that the material does not need to be handled by everyone, that creates detrimental learning spaces, and rather than moving forward you move backwards. I also read the comment that Annika mentioned above, and I think that that teacher is making an informed decision about how to best teach her students. If the student isn't comfortable playing a role, they are in charge and can make the decision to take their own career and skills in a different direction. By allowing each person to be in control of what they do (while still challenging themselves) is going to create a better learning environment in my opinion.
In the past year I have had heard increasing amounts about triggering content in theatre and other entertainment settings. The presence of consent in all situations is crucial to having safe and positive experiences. I have heard from my peers about situations in classrooms that have become triggering and unsafe. Something that my high school did not do, but CMU does to some extent is they allow for students to pull their name from consideration on shows with material that they are not comfortable with. However, there is a decent amount of pressure to not turn down assignments or refuse any material because one could be seen as ‘difficult’ or their grade could be impacted. In the professional world, it is easier to avoid this. Since theatre is usually a show by show basis for many, it is easy to avoid certain jobs, but something I have noticed, as of late, is more and more shows contain content that is sensitive. I am curious to see how this will be handled in the future.
The question of how to address the changing nature of sensitive content and trigger warnings in theatre absolutely applies to the classroom, a setting in which actors are supposed to become more comfortable and aware of their own identities and bodies. I’ve never performed or had to take acting classes, but I can assume that the practice of acting is already vulnerable without the added responsibility of approaching content that may be personally disturbing. I appreciated some of the author’s suggestions as to how to gently push on in the exploration of these topics in a manner that feels appropriate, consensual, and considerate. Just the act of a teacher’s taking extra care to word that question alone gives the student a sense of agency and options. This goes with the author’s argument against teaching as a one way interaction, and I agree that this relationship should be mutually patient and respectful.
I think this article brings up a very important topic and makes some really good points about the benefits of trigger warnings and their implications. I thought the crucial part of the article was the author’s comment that teachers should not be teaching their students that the system is what it is and that it will not change. It is very important for teachers to tell their students that nothing has to stay the way it is, if it is not working properly. There is no damage done to anyone by making sure that both actors and audience members are comfortable with a specific topic. I think one of the greatest developments in theater, recently, has been the push to making sure everyone feels safe and comfortable with what is being presented. If the audience are the actors are too busy being disturbed and upset by the material, there is no way for them to learn anything and the entire point of theater is negated.
The main discussion in the article is a lifetime quest in many educators' mind. How can a teacher do the job without overly shaping students? Personally I found this topic is not a neglected one. In my college and graduate school, I surely received a great amount of encouragement of expressing myself and heads-up of just being passive learning without thinking. However in the rehearsal room, the situation of the students being pushed to sensitive materials or emotional exposure is a much more serious and deep conversation to take place. In the few acting classes I have taken, the pressure of exposing one's self to the audience or class is always an challenge to me. During the process I can feel both the necessity and the reluctance, that's where the conflicts are. I haven't had my answer yet, but it is a good start for everyone in the industry to work on this together.
This is a really hard topic to discuss right now, so I am glad it is being talked about. It seems so regressive when I hear people talking like this where they say the new generation is getting soft or are not going to be prepared for the real world. Well that just seems like nonsense to me. It is the new generation that is going to be changing the world and forming it into a better, more accepting place that is more receptive to the issues that we are facing today and more capable of handling them. I think it is important to push people, especially actors to find where their boundaries are and how capable they really are, but at the same time it is imperative to make the space they are doing that in as safe and conducive to this process as possible. No one is going to learn in a room where they are being traumatized or hurting from the material or work they are doing. It just makes sense to be providing students with a learning space that is the most beneficial to them as possible.
I think that there is a great importance and need for consent in the theatre and in a classroom setting. It doesn’t just involve explicit things of sexual nature, but also things that come to violence or other harsh topics. However, I think there’s a difference between being ‘triggered’ by the material, verses being uncomfortable by it. If someone is triggered by the content, then it brings about a mental and physical response of anxiety and panic. However, discomfort is something that only makes you feel a little off or unsettled, but doesn’t bring about the same visceral response. Confronting things that make us uncomfortable allows us to grow as develop as people. If we avoided everything that made us uncomfortable, I would never talk to people, or leave the house sometimes, or try new things. Theatre and classrooms should take into account what makes people uncomfortable and do their best to work with them through things, but solely being a little disturbed by a certain content should not become an excuse to avoid them and never confront them.
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