Alumni Testimonials
2015 Grahamstown Cohort at Liliesleaf Museum, Johannesburg
"The history we learned in Johannesburg, and its connections to the present, made me, as an artist want to create...I fell in love with the passionate and complicated nature of South Africa, a young country that has far to go but is further along than the US in many ways."
"It’s amazing how in spending so much time learning the narratives of other people, that you end up understanding your own narrative better.”
Performers on the Village Green, Grahamstown
"Take this course! The independence you gain from traveling abroad can only help lead to future opportunities. If you've never been away from home, this is a great opportunity. Sometimes you have to leave to know you want to come back."
"It was refreshing to be able to talk about race and the struggles that a person of color can face in an environment that felt so safe…This was the first time in my entire life that I ever felt like I was part of the theater community."
Walter Sisulu Square of Dedication, Johannesburg '15
"The biggest impact this course had on me is that I will not be able to look at my own country the same way again."
"The South Africa I experienced was simultaneously familiar and foreign, and made me look harder at American culture and racial politics than I ever have."
Soweto's Thembelenkosini Caregivers '15
"Seeing a different culture allowed me to reflect on my own culture in a way I have never been able to do before. You have to take this course. It will change how you look at theatre, the world, and your path as an artist in America."
"Going with a large, diverse group of people made for really interesting discussions after shows, and in these discussions I learned how to communicate my thoughts on a performance and situate those thoughts with other opinions."
2014 Cohort at the Constitutional Court, Johannesburg
I Learned...
...more about theatre performance than I have in the three years I've spent studying theater combined.
…that theatre is a delicate public forum that can easily mobilize people and ideas.
...that I want to be big and bold, and to make my voice heard.
…that theatre is a delicate public forum that can easily mobilize people and ideas.
...that I want to be big and bold, and to make my voice heard.
UMass undergrads Miguel, Annabeth, and Elena in Grahamstown