«Kalevala—Unwritten Fragments» by Teatr Węgajty / Field Project: Trevor Hill’s Autoethnographic Narration

Abstract

The text discusses the performance Kalevala The Unwritten Fragments of the Węgajty Theatre / Field Project, which in 2000/2001 opened a new phase in the theatre’s activity. The performance continued the thematic, aesthetic, and method choices of the Węgajty Village Theatre, while also opening new paths of exploration. The group’s work was particularly transformed, and a new quality was brought into its accompanying reflection, by the presence of the actor and anthropologist Trevor Hill. The analysis of Hill’s autoethnographic description of their work on Kalevala allows us to distinguish three dimensions of autoethnography: as an innovative technique of obtaining information, as a research method (analytical autoethnography), and as an indicator of a new paradigm of producing knowledge about social life and its participants (evocative autoethnography).The use of the autoethnographic method in research on the Węgajty Theatre made it possible to access information that is otherwise difficult to obtain, including the actor’s experiences and internal processes.

Keywords

• Węgajty Theatre
• «Kalevala»
• epic poem staging
• improvisation
• collective creation
• autoethnographic research in theatre