Performing Protest in the Americas
This course has been canceled. Please check back for Summer 2026 offerings in Fall 2025.
THEA S4315 - 3 POINTS
SESSION A: May 26–July 4, 2025
INSTRUCTOR: Leticia Robles Moreno
Day & Time: MW 1–4:10PM
THEATRE
SUMMER 2025
This course explores the dynamics of protest across the Americas through the lens of performance studies. Utilizing a decolonial and feminist framework, students will analyze a variety of protest performances. Using documentaries and audiovisual footage as primary sources, we will examine how embodied artistic actions challenge power structures and catalyze political mobilization. The course engages with a wide spectrum of movements and events, including the Civil Rights Movement, the protests against the dictatorships in Chile and Argentina, the Zapatista Movement, Black Lives Matter, ACT UP, and Idle No More. Through these cases, we will critically assess how performance is used as a tool for resistance, and social justice.
Learning Objectives
By the end of the course students will be able to:
- Analyze Protest Movements Through Performance Studies: Students will critically examine protest movements across the Americas by applying key concepts from performance studies, identifying how embodied actions and symbolic gestures shape political resistance.
- Apply Decolonial and Feminist Frameworks: Students will utilize decolonial and feminist lenses to explore the ways protest performances challenge dominant power structures and promote social justice, equity, and inclusion.
- Evaluate the Role of Embodied Tactics in Mobilizing Political Action: Students will assess how different forms of embodied protest—such as demonstrations, sit-ins, and performance art—are employed to confront authority and inspire collective political action.
Compare and Contrast Global Protest Movements: Through the study of movements like Black Lives Matter, ACT UP, and the Zapatista Movement, students will compare the strategies, contexts, and outcomes of various protest performances to understand their impact on local and global scales.
Columbia students do not need to apply, but they do need to register. All visiting students will need to apply to the School of Professional Studies and register upon acceptance.