Being B.A.D

Developed during the 2nd year of my MFA program at the University of Georgia, Being B.A.D. is a piece about personal acceptance and redemption from the cycle of abuse. This piece explores the lengths in which one decides to take that power back after years of physical and emotional abuse at the hands of her family and romantic partner.  1 in 4. It’s not just a number, it’s a declaration for change.

Being B.A.D. is an example of the theatrical pedagogical term ‘Activist Theatre’. I adapted Augusto Boal’s Rainbow of Desire actor-spectator model and developed an open process where personal and audience experiences of gender and relationship oppression were the focus of the work. In the wake of the #MeToo and Times Up movements, this applied theatre work is relevant to our community in providing insight to a cathartic resolution and engaging in civil dialogue.  This piece supplements the alarming statistics of ‘1 in 4’ women survivors of DV and IPV reported by the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence (NCADV) via the CDC, as well as, social and racial disparity, imposed gender roles, and continuing to raise awareness about domestic and intimate partner violence resources available to/for survivors and bystanders—especially on our college campuses.

This narrative-based solo was inspired by the unfortunate death of Karen Smith. A San Bernardino school teacher who was killed by her estranged husband after numerous accounts and reports to police about his violent history. I too am a victim of interpersonal violence and was drawn to the silent strength but also alarming numbers of African-American women overlooked on this topic and that needing a place to express that narrative of angst, hurt, but also redemption.

Methodological Approach(es): Solo Performance, Bruno & Mixon; Rainbow of Desire, Augusto Boal; Grotesque, Chekhov Technique; Narrative-based Storytelling

PERFORMANCES (Featured & Lead Artist)

Each performance had community outreach elements including a talkback discussion about the narrative-based solo performance and the artistic process of developing and performing Being B.A.D.

• 6th Annual NEON Festival  (Norfolk, VA), adjudicated
• KeyBank Rochester Fringe Festival (Rochester, NY), adjudicated
• BorderLight International Theatre + Fringe Festival (Cleveland, OH), adjudicated
• ODU Women’s History Month Symposium, (Norfolk, VA)
• Global Conference on Women and Gender, Christopher Newport University, (Newport News, VA)
• 19th Annual Asheville Fringe Festival (Asheville, NC), adjudicated 
• 1st Annual Richmond Fringe Fest (Richmond, VA), adjudicated 
• Virginia Theatre Association Conference (Norfolk, VA)
• NC Women’s Theatre Fringe Festival (Raleigh, NC), adjudicated 
• Black Theatre Network Conference (Winston-Salem, NC)
• Gender, Bodies, and Technology Conference (Roanoke, VA), adjudicated 
• A Black Love Conversation: Virginia Tech Women’s Center Event (Blacksburg, VA)

Harris, B. S. Embodying Redemption Through Theatre: Performing Being B.A.D.

International

• Featured performer at BorderLight International Theatre + Fringe Festival in July 2021, (Cleveland, OH), adjudicated

• Performed in session: SATB (Storytelling and the Body): 2nd Inclusive Interdisciplinary Conference, Progressive Connexions; Lisbon, Portugal, Virtual, April 2021.

National

• Presented paper/performed in session: 44th Annual Organization for the Study of Communication, Language (OSCLG), Virtual, October 2021.

• Presented paper/performed in session: 6th Annual International Gender & Sexuality Studies Conference (IGSS), University of Central Oklahoma, Virtual, September 2021.

• Presented paper/performed in session: 2021 Global Conference on Women and Gender, Christopher Newport University, Virtual, March 2021.

• Presented/performed in session: 11th Annual African, African American, & Diaspora Studies (AAAD) Conference, James Madison University, Virtual, February 2021.

• Presented paper/performed in session: 2020 Global Conference on Women and Gender, Christopher Newport University, March 2020.

• Harris, B. S. Three Hysterical Women: Embodying Resistance Through Theatre. Performed in session: Gender, Bodies & Technology Conference: TechnoLogics: Power and Resistance, Roanoke, VA., April 2019.

Regional

• Featured Performer: 6th Annual NEON Festival, Norfolk, VA., October 2021.

• Performed in session: Virginia Theatre Association Conference 2019, Norfolk, VA., October 2019.

• Harris, B. S. Resilient Sustainability Simplified”: Coastal @ VT. Presented and performed in session: Center for Communicating Sciences’ Advancing the Human Condition Symposium, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA., November 2018.