Racial loneliness : learning what shapes belonging

Abstract

In this thesis, I explore how Nordic theatre education affects POC students’ sense of belonging and their artistic development within its walls. It is based on theories of whiteness, tokenism, representation, and racial loneliness, as a key starting point, since this concept helped me understand and put words to many of the experiences and questions that have shaped this thesis. The materials I chose to work through are mainly articles, previous theses, a questionnaire with current and former POC students, and my own reflections. The methods used are questionnaire analysis, reading of research and artistic material, comparison between institutions, and personal reflections. Through these materials and methods, I examine how educational theatre institutions speak about diversity compared to their efforts to advance it, how their structures and artistic choices affect POC students, and what kinds of change might be needed. This thesis shows that, even though theatre institutions often describe themselves as diverse and inclusive, their structures, teaching methods, and artistic references can still reproduce a sense of distance from the education itself, thereby creating racial loneliness. It also points to a clear gap between institutional ideals and lived experience, something I recognise in both my own experience and in the responses of other students. The relevance of this thesis lies in showing that meaningful inclusion in theatre education requires more than diversity in numbers; it also requires changes in structures and teaching methods.

So the question is, what would real inclusion actually require?