While the criminological literature has devoted great attention towards examining prison programs and interventions, the research has largely overlooked arts-based initiatives within prison. To gain an understanding of the impact that prison theatre has on the lives of criminalized individuals, this thesis represents a case study on Canada’s only inmate-run prison theatre, William Head on Stage (WHoS). Through qualitative interviews with 15 incarcerated WHoS participants and 6 former WHoS participants, this study explores the experiences of individuals with this long-standing theatre initiative. By implementing an integrative conceptual framework that captures the prison backdrop to which prison theatre operates, this study draws on Goffman’s (1961) total institutions as well as conceptual understandings around the prison culture (Ricciardelli, 2015; 2014b). Through the analysis of the participants’ experiences, the emerging themes in this study collectively reveal how the impacts of WHoS stem from the contrasting nature of prison theatre to both the structural and social systems of prison. While this research study helps substantiate the significance of arts-based initiatives like WHoS, it also helps bridge the gap within the literature between the arts and criminology.

The Jellyfish Project (JFP) is the environmental initiative that uses music as a means to engage youth, increase awareness about climate realities, and promote behaviour change. Music is an exceptional tool to captivate youths’ attention and increase their receptivity towards environmental messages. The arts also play a role in democratizing engagement and exhibit the potential to mobilize social action and change. Thus, music serves more than a leisure purpose, it can rally youth around a common purpose and create a powerful shared experience between musicians and their audiences. This community-based case study connects arts-centred movements to an ecosystems perspective and social marketing approaches, while establishing social engagement as a social determinant of health. Social engagement is the intentional and active participation in one’s community to create change and requires resources, efficacy, and opportunities for participation. Multiple data collection methods were used, including focus groups with youth, interviews with key informants, and social media analytics. Research themes include 1) The Power of Music, 2) Seeking Connections, 3) Awareness ≠ Change, and 4) Searching for Solutions. Findings showed that The JFP presentation was well-received by its audiences. Awareness, the primary goal of the organization increased, yet it was evident that for behaviour change to occur a broader community-level strategy is necessary. This strategy needs to involve active participation by students, numerous follow-up strategies, and community partnerships to address contextual issues and support sustained change. Implications for practice include developing active participation and partnerships; incorporating additional interaction with youth in the school presentation program; enhancement of online and social media strategies, and the provision of lived, multi-sensory experiences, both online and in the community. This intentionally transdisciplinary research filled gaps in the literature concerning the interconnections between social engagement, the social determinants of health, and the ecosystems perspective. It was also the first body of research to propose that social engagement is an appropriate community-level social determinant of health. Originating in real world experiences, this research advances knowledge translation and exchange immediately, informing the social engagement strategies of not-for-profit organizations as they harness the energy of the arts to effect social change. / Graduate / 0413 / 0515 / 0566 / jlansfie@uvic.ca

Art has a long and nuanced history within the context of the prison. Prisoners have utilized wall drawings, tattooing, journaling, and other forms of creative expression to break the monotony of prison life. Over time, art has evolved in the prison context and has been utilized by researchers, therapists, and teachers as a method of rehabilitation that falls outside of more conventional methods such as talk therapy, drug treatment, and anger management programs. Arts programming allows prisoners to express themselves in new and creative ways, as well as the ability to build new skills and foster better relationships with themselves and each other. A review of the literature discusses the negative effects of imprisonment on the body. As a result of the violent and incapacitating nature of being caged, prisoners become mirrors of the carceral space. Bodies become rigid, condensed, hunched, or even bulky in order to survive. Dance is an opportunity for prisoners to find freedom within the walls of a prison, as well as more tangible benefits such as improving posture, flexibility, and giving prisoners new ways to express themselves through movement. This can lead to improved self-esteem, a sense of accomplishment, and fostering better relationships with themselves and others. Using Foucault’s concept of docile bodies as well as Goffman’s theory dramaturgy, this research serves to fill in gaps in the literature around how dance impacts the body and emotional well-being. Through one-on-one interviews with members of the Royal New Zealand Ballet, this paper will examine dance’s ability to free the body and help prisoners find a sense of belonging and identity unrelated to their criminality.