“ME — THE OTHER”:
INCLUSIVE THEATRE & NARRATIVE RESTORATION INITIATIVE
Deb Gottesman /
The Theatre Lab — Life Stories Institute
(Washington, D.C., US)
Yuliia Vintoniv /
Ukrainian Catholic University
(Lviv, Ukraine)
THE PROJECT
“Me – the Other” brings together people with congenital and acquired disabilities — including those with war-related injuries — alongside students and community members to create original dramatic work from lived experience. Through movement, storytelling, and devised performance, the project builds dignity, narrative agency, and connection while challenging stigma around disability in wartime Ukraine.
THE PARTNERSHIP
The Theatre Lab brings over twenty years of experience in autobiographical theatre and trauma-informed facilitation through its Life Stories program. Yuliia Vintoniv, a theologian and educator at Ukrainian Catholic University, brings expertise in community-engaged learning and disability-inclusive practice — and is the 2022 Uniservitate Global Award recipient for the original “Me – the Other” project.
LOOKING AHEAD
• Pilot university course at Ukrainian Catholic University with students and community members
• The Theatre Lab’s future work with U.S. military veterans informed by Ukraine’s experience with war trauma and disability
