Locked In is an going collaboration with healthcare professionals interested in fighting systemic racism and acknowledging housing as healthcare. Our original script- Locked In: A Theatrical Dialogue about Healthcare and Homelessness -  is about systemic bias in healthcare against people who are unhoused. Our body of work now includes two scenes and full length play that have been performed in the Twin Cities, Chicago, and at the national Theater of the Oppressed conference. Through these performances, we have deepened our capacity to use Locked In as a vehicle to facilitate meaningful conversations and relationship-building that catalyze social change in our health system. 

We continue to deepen our collaborative work by growing our community of storytellers and modes of storytelling. We believe that such growth will expand the known narratives, the possible solutions imagined, and the communal power to bring about social change in our community.

Dr. Chen Alon

This year, zAmya is hosting Theater of the Oppressed scholar Dr. Chen Alon in a six month virtual residency. During that time, we will offer two main public activities:

- A film screening of a documentary about his work in April

- A three-day training in his particular brand of Theater of the Oppressed in May

Chen Alon is a theatre activist, actor and director, who wrote his Ph.D. on the Palestinian-Israeli Polarized Model of Theatre of the Oppressed, in the Theatre Department at Tel-Aviv University. As a Major (res.) in the Israeli army he co-founded “Courage to Refuse”, a movement of officers and combatant soldiers who refuse to serve in the occupied Palestinian territories, an action for which he was sentenced to prison. Chen is also a co-founder of “Combatants for Peace”, a movement of Palestinian and Israeli combatants who have abandoned the way of violence and struggle together non-violently against the occupation.

“There Is Another Way” film screening

Since its inception in Latin America in the 1970s, Theatre of the Oppressed (TO) has continually been adjusted to remain relevant as a tool for revolutionary social change. Israeli activist and scholar Chen Alon has worked with various groups to create what he terms a “Polarized” TO model. As an introduction to Chen and his body of work, in April we’ll be hosting a screening of the 2025 documentary “There Is Another Way” by filmmaker Stephen Apkon, about Combatants for Peace. 

“There Is Another Way” tells the story of a group of visionaries who refuse to surrender to violence and injustice, and in doing so show that another path is possible - for them, for us, and for all humanity. Amidst the devastation and escalating violence of October 7th and the war in Gaza, can a bi-national group of former enemy combatants face their greatest challenges, when their belief in the possibility of peace are tested.

Following the screening will be a Q&A with Stephen Apkon and Chen Alon, who will be joining us via Zoom. 

This event will be free and open to the public at the Minneapolis Central Library in downtown Minneapolis. 

More details coming soon!

Polarized Theater of the Oppressed Training

Over the course of three days in May, Chen will share principles and practices of TO, and guide participants through activities that build trust between two “polarized” groups that are sometimes positioned adversarially—healthcare workers and those experiencing homelessness. The residency will enable “housed” and “homeless” groups to see the other, deepening relationships amongst key stakeholders working towards greater housing security.

TO offers the creative tools to build these relationships while also activating an aesthetic space that enables collective analysis and “rehearsal” towards revolutionary change. 

While everyone is welcome, the primary audiences for the training are people who have experience with housing instability, and health workers, including: care-givers and mutual-aid workers, and harm reduction specialists. Activists and artists are also encouraged to attend. 

More details coming soon! 

Gratitude

These activities would not be possible without support from an Imagine Fund's Special Events Grant from the University of Minnesota.