Vocal Empowerment for Young Egyptian Women: Increasing Contributions to Sustainable Development
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i Vocal Empowerment for Young Egyptian Women: Increasing Contributions to Sustainable Development Sarah Fahmy B.A., Theatre, University of Kentucky, 2017 B.A., Arts Administration, University of Kentucky, 2017 A Thesis submitted in the partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts In Theatre and Performance Studies University of Colorado, Boulder 2019 ii This thesis entitled: Vocal Empowerment for Young Egyptian Women: Increasing Contributions to Sustainable Development written by Sarah Fahmy has been approved for the Department of Theatre & Dance Beth Osnes, PhD Marcos Steuernagel, PhD Date:____________ The final copy of this thesis has been examined by the signatories, and we find that both the content and the form meet acceptable presentation standards of scholarly work in the above mentioned discipline. IRB protocol # 16-0261 iii Abstract: Fahmy, Sarah (M.A. Theatre & Performance Studies, Department of Theatre & Dance) Vocal Empowerment for Young Egyptian Women: Increasing Contributions to Sustainable Development Thesis Advisor: Beth Osnes, Ph.D., Associate Professor This study assesses the impact theatre based vocal empowerment activities can have on young Egyptian women’s self-perception of their ability to contribute to sustainable development. Through the presentation and analysis of the qualitative and quantitative data collected from 55 participants from conducting the SPEAK: Vocal Empowerment curriculum in Alexandria and Aswan, Egypt between June - July 2018. This study depicts how the change in perceived self efficacy, voice quality and content of participants’ speech in English and in Arabic impacts self-authorship. The intensive 12-session curriculum engages young women in a series of theatre activities and vocal exercises including self-authored skits, devised songs and personal declarations, developed by applied theatre practitioners and speech, language pathologists to target multiple aspects of vocal empowerment—physical, emotional, psychological, and ethical—enabling young women to achieve a greater sense of ownership of their voices and confidence in their bodies. Vocal empowerment is the belief that what you say is worthwhile, your voice belongs to you, and that you have the right for self-authorship. This data reflects how vocal empowerment can assist young Egyptian women decolonize their minds, help reduce their disidenitification from their native culture, and reinstate their self- perception in their ability to contribute effectively to sustainable development in their communities. The study dismantles the perception in Egypt by the young women in this study iv that proficiency in the English language is a necessary tool for effective contribution to sustainable development. It emphasises how increased vocal efficacy is one useful step for young Egyptian women to reclaim their suppressed voices within a postcolonial community and increase their desire to sustainably develop the country. KEY WORDS: Postcolonialism, Identity, Egypt, Young Women, Vocal Empowerment, Sustainable Development v Dedications: I dedicate this thesis to my toughest critic and biggest cheerleader, my mother. I am eternally grateful for your years of sacrifices and your persistent commitment to my education. You continue to inspire me every day to follow my dreams. I couldn’t do any of this without you. I would like to express my gratitude to my mentor and advisor, Dr. Beth Osnes, whose nurturing support and guidance enabled me to discover this path, and for continuously motivating me to break interdisciplinary barriers. I would also like to thank my committee members, Dr. Marcos Steuernagel and Dr. Oliver Gerland for continuing to challenge me, and for their endless support guiding me during my numerous existential crises over the past two years. I would also like to thank AASTMT for supporting all logistical support and flexibility to implement this study. I would especially like to thank the phenomenal young women of Aswan and Alexandria. My journey as an applied theatre facilitator in Egypt would not be possible without their insightful creativity and participation. Thank you for enriching my passion for performance, and allowing me to rediscover myself, reclaim my postcolonial voice, and empower me to believe I’m capable of teaching in Arabic. Last but not least, thank you to all my friends and family members, especially Kelsey Bauer and Amanda Rose Villarreal, who listened, supported and encouraged me to keep going. vi Table of Contents Introduction: .................................................................................................................................. 1 Theoretical Background: ............................................................................................................... 7 a. Introduction to Egyptian Postcolonialism: ......................................................................... 7 b. Egyptian Feminism: ............................................................................................................ 14 c. Voice: .................................................................................................................................... 19 d. Sustainable Development: .................................................................................................. 21 The Need for Study: ..................................................................................................................... 24 Vocal Empowerment through Applied Theatre: ......................................................................... 27 Methodology: ................................................................................................................................ 30 a. Site Description: .................................................................................................................. 30 b. Adaptation of SPEAK for Egyptian Participants: ........................................................... 31 c. Data and Analysis: ............................................................................................................... 33 Findings: ...................................................................................................................................... 38 a. Qualitative Data: ................................................................................................................. 38 b. Quantitative Data: ............................................................................................................... 60 Conclusion: .................................................................................................................................. 62 Bibliography: ................................................................................................................................ 70 Supporting Documents: ............................................................................................................... 73 Appendix 1: Daily Journal ..................................................................................................... 73 Appendix 2: Affirmational Songs .......................................................................................... 86 Appendix 3: Group Skits ........................................................................................................ 87 Appendix 4: Key for Data Analysis ....................................................................................... 87 Appendix 5: Cumulative Code Book ..................................................................................... 90 vii Tables Table 1: Participant Demographics ............................................................................................... 31 Table 2: Cumulative code application for indicating participants’ voice breaks and interruptions ......................................................................................................................................... 46 Table 3: Most frequent code application for participants response to the prompt: “My voice is important to me because” ................................................................................................ 50 Table 4: Most frequent code application for participants response to the prompt: “My greatest community concern is" .................................................................................................... 54 Table 5: Most frequent code application for participants response to the prompt: “One idea I have to improve my community is to” ............................................................................ 56 Table 6: Most Frequent code application for participants ability to continue their thoughts ....... 59 Table 7: Cumulative participants responses to baseline and final Vocal Efficacy surveys Questions one to twelve. ................................................................................................. 60 Table 8: Cumulative participants responses to baseline and final vocal efficacy surveys Questions thirteen (a), thirteen (b),thirteen (c). ............................................................... 61 Table 9: Participants language choice in responding to the survey (no change noted from baseline to final) ............................................................................................................................ 61 Table 10: Cumulative Code Book ................................................................................................. 90 viii Figures Figure 1 Vocal Efficacy