Theatrical Sites of Memory: Witnessing Terrorism and War in Post-9/11 Performance

Abstract

Thus far in the twenty-first century, the United States has experienced a plethora of nationally tragic and traumatic events which have unbalanced, reshaped, and challenged the identity and collective memory of the American people. Now, in the third decade of the century, we commemorate the significant anniversaries of acts of foreign and domestic terrorism and reach major milestones in the wars in the Middle East. With these anniversaries and commemorations comes a resurgence in Memory Studies focusing on memorial museums and other sites of memory that offer visitors the opportunity to encounter another’s lived experience and memory as their own. “Theatrical Sites of Memory: Witnessing Terrorism and War in Post-9/11 Performance” argues that theatrical performances, like museums and memorials, are sites of memory that communicate witness testimony to audiences. In doing so, theatrical sites of memory may transform audiences into empathetic, socially-conscious individuals. I consider how cultural memory is formed, and memories of twenty-first-century trauma are interpreted in theatrical performance using the conceptual frameworks of Michael Rothberg’s Multidirectional Memory, Marianne Hirsch’s Postmemory, and Alison Landsberg’s Prosthetic Memory. With these frameworks in mind, I analyze five dramatic texts and their respective productions about the post-9/11 experience of the Muslim American community, the Iraq War, and the Sandy Hook Elementary mass shooting.