Lauren Jerke
Position
Contact
Area of expertise
Indigenous education; Indigenous feminism; Indigenous pedagogy; drama education; applied theatre; arts-based research; Indigenous research; drama to address social justice
Lauren Jerke’s (Métis, Polish-German) work as an artist, educator, and researcher is grounded in theatre-based, community-centered methods, where storytelling and lived experiences are central. Lauren’s artistry is deeply intertwined with her commitment to address social and ecological justice.
Through the use of drama, she works with individuals and communities to explore and expose the disconnect between personal realities and broader political and economic interests. Together, they engage in understanding the root causes of injustice, using theatre as a means to confront these contradictions in powerful, creative ways.
She has worked in a diverse array of communities, including psychiatric hospitals, elder care homes, medical and law schools, judicial education, urban Indigenous populations, and Métis and First Nation communities.
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Indigenous education
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Indigenous feminism
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Indigenous pedagogy
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drama education
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applied theatre
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arts-based research
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indigenous research
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drama to address social justice
Jerke, L., Arcand, R., & Ward, R. (2023). “We Can Speak for Ourselves”: An Applied Theatre Workshop About Decolonization for Judges. Percées, 9.
Jerke, L., & Dobson, W. (2020). Theatre to address social justice issues with gatekeepers in Canada. In The routledge companion to Applied Performance Volume 1: Mainland Europe, North and Latin America, Southern Africa, and Australia and New Zealand. Routledge.
Dobson, W., Duchene, P., Jerke, L., & Donnelly-Rheaume, F. (2019). ‘No stepping back: The story of a Canadian truth and reconciliation play for children. In U.K. National Drama Magazine 25(1).
Jerke, L., Prendergast, M., & Dobson, W. (2017). Smoking Cessation in Mental Health Communities: A Living Newspaper Applied Theatre Project. In Creating Social Change Through Creativity (pp. 171–186). Springer International Publishing AG.
Wise, J., & Jerke, L. (2015). Liz Gorrie and the Kaleidoscope Alternative. Theatre Research in Canada, 36(1), 7–32.
Jerke, L. (2011). "Balancing analytic discipline and artistic intuition during the devising process for No Particular Place to Go." Canadian Journal of Practice-based Research in Theatre 2(1). <http://cjprt.uwinnipeg.ca/index.php/cjprt/index>.
Doolittle, L., & Jerke, L. (2010). "Talking global, performing local: Something to declare." In Salverson, J, (Ed.) (2010). Popular Political Theatre and Performance. Toronto: Playwrights Canada Press (pp. 153-60).