Who We Are

Mary C. Parker is a creative who designs spaces to explore how bias and oppression show up on and off stage for creatives, artists, educational institutions, and corporations.

Mary believes that bias informs the oppression we cause to others and to ourselves.

By deepening our own awareness of the biases we carry, we can then begin to dismantle oppression.

Bias is having a conscious or unconscious preference for another person or thing. Oppression is the exploitation and denial of privileges from one group over another. Oppression can be ideological, institutional, interpersonal, or individual. Bias and oppression are often rooted in white supremacy culture thinking. Similar to how any person, organization, or institution can be biased or cause oppression, any person, organization, or institution also has characteristics of white supremacy culture. More can be read about this from Tema Okun here.

Our Framework

Through her work, Mary has learned that dismantling oppression can be both painful and joyful. Yes, causing or receiving oppression is painful and there can be joy in the community built to dismantle it. To find joy, Mary uses a praxis of applied theatre. Applied theatre is the practice of taking theatre concepts and tools offstage with non-actors providing creative ways for folx to solve social problems. 

Mary’s praxis of applied theatre is built on concepts from applied improvisation, playback theatre, and theatre of the oppressed. Through a methodology rooted in play, these praxes provide environments to explore uncomfortable topics in a fun and humorous way. Utilizing play provides an experiential learning space to increase awareness and explore practical ways to respond to situations with an anti-oppression lens. 

Applied Improvisation

Applied improvisation is based on improv comedy. Improv comedy is a form of unscripted theatre facilitated through teamwork. Performers create environments, dialogue, and stories that are entirely made up. The core tenets of improv include listening, agreement, and collaboration where performers typically draw inspiration from an audience's suggestion. Applying these core components offstage, improv can be used to increase listening, flexibility, and creativity. These components can be the foundation for finding safe, healthy, and humorous ways to engage with oppression.

Playback Theatre

Playback Theatre, founded by Jonathan Fox and Jo Salas, is a form of applied theatre where actors and musicians perform for an audience without a script. The performances are informed by the audience sharing stories, feelings, thoughts, and emotions. Playback actors and musicians utilize deep listening to respond and “playback” the teller’s story using music, movement, and theatrical acting. Participants will have the opportunity to have their voices heard uniquely with this offering of Playback Theatre that will showcase individual stories and experiences as it relates to oppression. By sharing stories, both the storyteller, audience, and actors can witness and give attention in a way that is not often done with BAME folx. This delighted attention found in Playback allows BAME folx to be seen and to have a voice in a public way.

Theatre of the Oppressed

Augusto Boal, Founder of Theatre of the Oppressed is often cited as calling this form of applied theatre a “rehearsal for the revolution.” This means that this applied theatre practice creates space for participants to take time practicing and strategizing different ways to respond to oppression. Theatre of the Oppressed builds a temporary community of those in attendance to rehearse different ways to intervene towards oppressors via a method called Forum Theatre. Theatre of the Oppressed also provides opportunities to transform an experience into a visual image using a method called Image Theatre. Both methods provide opportunities to increase visibility to the difficult and oppressive moments experienced by BAME folx that often live in the shadows of our lives.

Engaging in this praxis can increased awareness and that is one of the catalysts for change. We cannot change what we do not know so doing the often, uncomfortable of learning who we are and what we think can cause shifts in ourselves and begin to reduce bias and oppression. By taking a more open and vulnerable approach to addressing oppression using play, Mary can support clients to disrupt fragility and deepen humility. 

Our Approach

Mary provides a three-prong approach of value that is educational, experiential, and emotional. The approach centers on Awareness, Collaboration, and Empathy (ACE).

Awareness: Critical-Thinking and Reflection

• Develop the ability to think more critically about complex issues relevant to oppression and communication.

• Gain an understanding of narratives and perspectives from others including underlying emotions, experiences, and values that inform these positions.

• Coach clients to develop a clearer understanding of their perspective, and develop an awareness of their emotions, assumptions, and values, as well as support clients to develop a vision for their ideal self.

Collaboration: Relationship Building and Communication

• Develop clients’ awareness as a communicator and collaborator and their ability to foster non-oppressive collaborations and communication.

• Explore strategies to inform how clients can respond to oppression in everyday communication and collaborations.

• Foster relationship building between clients across inter-group dynamics within BAME communities and intra-group dynamics in business and educational settings.

• Enhance client’s ability to see possibilities of collaboration when experiencing different perspectives.

Empathy: Compassionate Listening

• Encourage participants to approach play and oppression with genuine curiosity and an intention for learning and understanding.

• Allow clients to acknowledge each other’s emotions and humanity by connecting with others’ experiences and feelings.

• Deepen ability to become curious in the face of discomfort and extend a willingness to engage with compassion.

A Final Note

Mary’s support comes in the form of services of playshops, speaking, coaching, and consulting. While these offerings are not therapy, the act of raising awareness and giving voice to complex feelings can be therapeutic. 

To read more about what you can expect as a participant, here is my code of conduct.

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