Performing Arts/Storytelling and Public Space

This workshop delves into the dynamic relationship between our built environment and our inner world. Through physical and creative exploration, we will investigate how the spaces we move through—whether streets, squares, gardens, bridges, homes, neighborhoods, or monuments—intersect with our personal and collective histories. How do these spaces shape the stories we tell about ourselves? From these inquiries, participants will develop performance methodologies rooted in their discoveries. The workshop places particular emphasis on spoken word and narrative writing, as expressed through space, body, and voice.

Instructor

Chirine El Ansary is an accomplished storyteller, performance artist, and researcher, born in Cairo. She holds a PhD in Practice-as-Research and an MA in Performance Making from Goldsmiths, University of London, Department of Theatre and Performance. Chirine also studied theatre at the American University in Cairo and the Jacques Lecoq International Theatre School in Paris. Her work delves into the fusion of words and movement to create immersive atmospheres, evoke deep emotions, and craft vivid imagery. Central to her performances is the exploration of how people interact with the spaces they occupy, as well as the delicate boundary between the ordinary and the extraordinary, memory and imagination.