PROPOSAL TYPE
Lightning Round
SEEKING
- Seeking General Feedback and Interest
RELATED TOPICS
- Archives
- Museums/Exhibits
- Public Engagement
ABSTRACT
This study explores how theatrical techniques can revitalize presidential libraries and museums, using Betty Ford as a case study. Combining expert interviews, fieldwork, and archival research, it argues that performance-based interpretation can bridge archival history and contemporary relevance. By turning lived experiences and artifacts into dynamic storytelling, presidential libraries and museums can foster deeper public engagement and ensure figures like Betty Ford remain vivid and vital for future generations.
DESCRIPTION
Visiting the Clinton Presidential Center in 2022, and later the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum, I became captivated by the overlooked impact of First Ladies on American culture and policy. Betty Ford’s story—her openness about personal struggles and her advocacy for health and equality—sparked my interest in using performance to bring such stories out of the archives and into public consciousness.
As a theatre practitioner and historian, I’m investigating how live, research-driven performance can deepen engagement with presidential libraries. Drawing on expert interviews, field visits, and scholarship on biographical drama and museum education, I’m exploring ways to transform archival materials—such as Bess Truman’s “Dear Bess” letters or Betty Ford’s handwritten notes—into performances that foster empathy and dialogue. These approaches, inspired by scholars like Dr. Katherine Jellison and practitioners like Lisa Rafferty, have the potential to make history more relevant and accessible, especially to younger audiences.
For this roundtable, I hope to gather museum professionals, theatre-makers, and historians to discuss the practical and ethical complexities of integrating performance into presidential libraries and museums. I am seeking feedback and collaboration on:
-Innovative formats for educational programming that encourage engagement and inclusivity,
-Balancing historical accuracy with creative storytelling,
-Building effective partnerships between libraries, artists, and communities,
-Evaluating the impact of these initiatives on visitors.
Key questions for discussion include: How do we ethically dramatize real lives? How can performance add nuance rather than spectacle? What themes resonate most with audiences, and how do we elevate lesser-known voices like First Ladies and presidential children?
My aim is to share research findings and practical examples, and to generate ideas for new partnerships and projects. I hope this conversation will help ensure that stories like Betty Ford’s become a vibrant, living part of American public history.
If you have a direct offer of assistance, sensitive criticism, or wish to pass along someone’s contact information confidentially, please get in contact directly:
Jamey Grisham, Stephens College, [email protected]
All feedback and offers of assistance should be sent by November 15, 2025. If you have general ideas or feedback to share, please feel free to use the comments feature below.