Voice matters: Questioning representation in making performance with Babel

This article explores the creation of a theatrical performance from oral archives through a practice-based research project conducted with a French theatre company, Compagnie Babel, in autumn 2023. Known for its work with both ‘everyday experts’ (citizens, residents) and professional experts, the company collaborated with master’s students in artistic creation at Grenoble Alpes University. Together, they developed Conseil municipal (‘City Council’), a short performance interweaving the voices of political representatives and participants in alternative forms of governance, presented on 10 November 2023 at Grenoble’s Maison de la Création et de l’Innovation. The article reflects on the specific methodologies developed through this collaboration, focusing on the aesthetic and political challenges involved in working with others’ voices as primary material. By considering voice as both a physical and symbolic expression of subjectivity, it investigates the complexity of making theatre from real-world testimonies and demonstrates how it influences the writing process, fostering more collaborative authorial practices.