Devika is currently Associate Director of Albany Park Theater Project.
FELLOWSHIPS
Marshall Scholar, 2017-2019
Inaugural Fellow, Laboratory for Global Performance and Politics, 2017-2019
Global Cultural Fellow, Institute for International Cultural Relations, 2017
Davis Projects for Peace Fellowship, Kathryn Davis Foundation, 2015
Lisa J. Raines Fellowship for Independent Research, Georgetown University, 2015
Doyle "Engaging Difference" Fellowship, Berkley Center for Religion, Peace, and World Affairs, 2015-2016
WORKSHOP FACILITATION
2019-2021. Workshops at Albany Park Theater Project.
2021. Documentary Poetry. Chicago Desi Youth Rising.
2021. Creating immersive theater during a pandemic. Marshall Scholarship.
2019. Virtual reality and applied theatre workshop at University of East London.
2019. University of East London’s Open Learning Initiative, poetry-drama workshops.
2019. Scheherazade Initiatives, supporting refugee-led theatre workshops for English language learning.
2018. Post-Truth Theatre Workshop at Post-Truth Conference, University of Cambridge.
2017. Reflection Groups Post-Trump. Georgetown University, School of Foreign Service. Washington, DC.
2016. Theatre of the Oppressed workshops with women on India-Pakistan border. Davis Projects for Peace, Jammu & Kashmir, India.
2016. Power-based theatre workshop for children in special needs school. Bengaluru, India.
2016. Forum theatre workshops at Natrang Theatre. Jammu & Kashmir, India.
2015. Image theatre workshop for human rights activism. Amnesty International. Kathmandu, Nepal.
2015. Theatre workshops for children at Natrang Theatre. Jammu & Kashmir, India.
EDUCATION
Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, September 2019
Master of Arts in Applied Theatre
making theatre with communities: refugees, new immigrants, young people
University of Cambridge, June 2018
Distinction: Master of Philosophy in Sociology
focus on refugee rights, surveillance, and bodily technology
Georgetown University, May 2017
Bachelor of Science in Foreign Service, magna cum laude
self-design major: Human Rights in Crisis | minor: Arabic
President, School of Foreign Service Academic Council 2016-2017
Bard Honors College in al-Quds, Fall 2015
independent research on rights of internally displaced persons
Middlebury Language School, Summer 2014
2-month Arabic language immersion program
Andover High School, June 2013
High Honors
Dual Enrollment at Merrimack College
Research Projects
Moving Towards a Migratory Dramaturgy, Royal Central School of Speech and Drama
UK | May 2019- September 2019
Proposing the concept of ‘migratory dramaturgy,’ a new political theatrical structure that resists xenophobic and neo-colonial oppression, dwelling instead in the hybridity of migrant identities.
Electronic Tagging of Asylum-Seekers, University of Cambridge
UK | September 2017- June 2018
Interview-based study of the lived experiences of asylum-seekers living with electronic tagging devices.
“Acting Out”: Violence, Community, and Women’s Theatre on the India-Pakistan Border, School of Foreign Service Honors Thesis, published in St. Anthony’s International Review in Feb 2019
Washington, DC, USA/Jammu & Kashmir, India | April 2016-May 2017
Practical and theoretical case study that focuses on the oppression of displaced persons and the use of theatre for self-expression.
Power Through Power: Solar Panels and Suppression in the Jerusalem Periphery, Culture and Politics/Mortara Center for International Studies
Washington, DC | January 2015 – April 2015
Analysis of the denial of electricity as a form of Israeli socio-political control over a stateless Bedouin population in Jerusalem.
Theatre in South Asian Post-Conflict Zones, Lisa J. Raines Fellowship
South Asia | May 2015 – August 2015
Ethnographic fieldwork, interviews, and archival analysis for an independent report about the use of theatre for healing, reconciliation, and cultural preservation in South Asian post-conflict zones.
Safety and Stabilization: The Need for Immediate Trauma Care for Asylum-Seekers in Germany, Bard Honors College in al-Quds University
Berlin, Germany | October 2015 – August 2015
Conducted participant-observation and interviews of asylum-seekers in a Berlin medical center for refugees, as well as interviewed Berlin organizations for psychotherapy, refugee advocacy, and women’s rights, to create a proposal for German trauma care systems.
HONORS and AWARDS
Commencement Speaker (video)
Georgetown University, 2017
Georgetown "Women for Others" Award
Georgetown University, 2017
"Improving the Human Condition" Award
School of Foreign Service, 2015
First Place, "It's Not Enough to Refrain from Injustice"
for proposal to create "disturbance art" in the campus community
Berkley Center for Religion, Peace, and World Affairs Symposium's Call for Ideas, 2015
International Service Award
Georgetown Corp, 2014
Devised Theatre
Directing Team | Port of Entry with Albany Park Theater Project and Third Rail Projects, an immersive show that invites the audience to experience the homes of immigrant families in Albany Park, Chicago. Ongoing.
Director | Yours Truly with Albany Park Theater Project, an immersive show through the mail in which audience members enter into an intimate pen pal relationship with a Filipina teenager in Albany Park, Chicago. March - June 2021.
Dramaturg, Writer | Proclamation Project 7, Freedom Acts, a youth program through American Repertory Theater focusing on reimagining freedom, the American Dream, and the Declaration of Independence. Performed at the OBERON in November 2019.
Director, Writer | Homework, an immersive, ethnographic performance telling the stories of people displaced by conflicts in Africa. Performed at the Migration Museum in July 2019.
Director, Writer, Adapter | A re-imagining of Stravinsky's The Soldier's Tale, considering his classic work in the context of modern warfare. Performed at Clapham Omnibus in November 2018.
Deviser, Playwright, Performer | I Pledge Allegiance, for the World Theatre Congress in Segovia, Spain, 2017; Lannan Symposium, Washington, DC USA, 2018; John Carroll Weekend, Seattle, Washington, 2018; Theatre Communications Group Conference, St. Louis, Missouri, 2018, Board of Governors, Washington, DC 2018, Association of Performing Arts Practitioners, 2018
Director | Reach Zero performed at Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, October 2018
Playwright | Roots performed at Georgetown University, 2017
Deviser, Co-Director | Generation WH(Y), for the Doris Duke Foundation in Washington, DC, 2015
Director | A Christmas Carol for Mask & Bauble, Washington, DC, 2014
Playwright, Director | Ever After, Triton Original Play Festival, Massachusetts, 2013
TEACHING & invited lectures
2021. “Performing Migration.” Spring 2021 course in the Department of Performing Arts, Georgetown University.
2020. “Cross-Cultural Performance Studies.” Fall 2020 course in the Department of Performing Arts, Georgetown University.
2019-2020. “Creating Theater about Immigrant Stories.” Illinois State University.
2018. “Electronic Tagging of Asylum-Seekers.” Migration Society, University of Cambridge.
2018. “Humane or Hostile Environment?” Amnesty International, Cambridge.
2018. “Making Art in Conflict Zones.” Syracuse University London.
2018. "Electronic Tagging of Asylum-Seekers." Human Migration and (In)Security, University College London.
2017. “Security and Risk in Fieldwork.” Intrepid Explorers, King's College London.
2017. “Humanizing Politics Through Performance.” Women’s National Democratic Club, Washington DC.
2017. “Voices Beyond Borders.” Invited Speaker at Northeast Storytelling Conference.
2016. “Using Theatre in Human Rights Activism.” Invited Lecture at Jammu University, Department of Law.
2015. “Disturbance Art: Engaging Difference through Pop-up Music, Dance, Theatre, and Visual Arts.” Doyle Symposium First Place, Georgetown University.
Human Rights Work Experience
Communications and Impact Evaluation, The Whistle
University of Cambridge, UK, June 2018-August 2019
Organize communications and measure impact for a human rights and technology NGO that gathers reports about human rights abuses. Co-created “End Everyday Racism” at Cambridge.
Co-Organizer, Post Truth Phenomenon Conference
University of Cambridge, UK, March 2018
Organized an interdisciplinary conference, bringing together academics, journalists, and human rights professionals to discuss issues of post-truth and fake news.
Refugee Rights Intern, Human Rights Watch
Washington, D.C., USA, Jan 2016- May 2017
Conducted legal research on detention of asylum-seekers, advocated resettlement cases, campaigned against oppressive refugee policy.
Translator, Caritas Medical Clinic
Berlin, Germany Oct 2015- Dec 2015
Translated Arabic and Urdu to English for Syrian, Iraqi, and Pakistani asylum-seekers in the Berlin State Office for Health and Social Affairs.
Resident Assistant, Georgetown University
Washington, DC Aug 2014- May 2017
Cared for domestic and international students, provided regular welfare activities and check-ins, and was responsible for their well-being and the well-being of the community.
Development and Research Intern, Amnesty International
Kathmandu, Nepal, July 2015- Aug 2015
Conducted extensive research on the state of post-earthquake rehabilitation and human rights.
Constituent Correspondence Intern, Congresswoman Niki Tsongas' Office
Lawrence, MA, USA, July 2012- Aug 2012
Worked on immigration, healthcare, refinancing, and other constituent casework in one of the poorest districts in the United States.
SELECTED publications
2020. “Moving Towards a Migratory Dramaturgy.” Howlround.
2019. “Acting Out: Violence, Community, and Women’s Theatre on the India-Pakistan Border. St. Antony’s International Review (peer-reviewed).
2019. “L’Histoire du Soldat’: Re-imagining Stravinsky’s score in the age of technological weapons.” Re- Interdisciplinary Network, University of Cambridge.
2018. "What we can learn from student activism." Marshall Scholarship Blog.
2018. "Artistic Statement". Laboratory for Global Performance and Politics.
2017. "Theatre of Witness and Resistance." Arts and International Affairs Journal.
2017. "Citizen Diplomacy: International Artists Speak on Cultural Ambassadorship." SixByEight Press.
2017. "The Creative Process of I Pledge Allegiance." School of Foreign Service, Georgetown University.
2017. "The Ethics of Storytelling." Office of Campus Ministry, Georgetown University.
2017. "I Pledge Allegiance: The Birth of a Performance." The Laboratory for Global Performance and Politics.