Borma Tbaqbaq – Il-Lingwa tal-Kċina: Neocolonialism and the Oppression of Women

Borma Tbaqbaq – Il-Lingwa tal-Kċina: Neocolonialism and the Oppression of Women is a practice-as-research project that attempts to investigate the parallels between patriarchal dynamics and the perpetuation of colonialism as manifested and portrayed in an original bilingual performance. The research question is explored from the perspective of the three female writers and performers of this theatrical piece. By interviewing these three women about the creative process of how they embodied these parallels through the rehearsals and performances, the research demonstrates and analyses how the depiction of these parallels can be conveyed powerfully and poignantly through the theatrical medium. The theoretical framework that influenced this process is rooted in feminist, queer and postcolonial theory, particularly the works of seminal authors such as Sara Ahmed,  Eve Kosofsky Sedgwick,  Leela Gandhi and bell hooks. The article also foregrounds the pedagogical implications of this project and proposes a workshop that can be applied within an educational setting.