Public Theatre and the Enslaved People of Colonial Saint-Domingue

Julia Prest is Professor of French and Caribbean Studies at the University of St Andrews, Scotland, UK. She has published widely on early-modern French and Caribbean theatre, opera and dance, and is the creator of the trilingual (English-French-Kreyòl) Theatre in Saint-Domingue, 1764-1791 performance database: 'theatreinsaintdomingue.org'.  She has collaborated with theatre-makers to create new works that bring colonial-era theatre to today’s audiences, and her edited collection, Colonial-Era Caribbean Theatre: Issues in Research, Writing and Methodology is forthcoming in 2023.

• 1 Introduction.- 2 Mitigated Spectators: Enslaved People in the Playhouse.- 3 Unsustainable Tensions: ‘Slave Ownership’ among Theatre-Makers.- 4 Mitigated Portrayals: Enslaved Figures in Creole Repertoire.- 5 Concealed Contributors: Enslaved Participation in Theatre-Making.- 6 New Citizens: Shifting Roles in Revolutionary-Era Theatre.- 7 Conclusion.

“Prest has written the definitive book on the colonial theater of Saint-Domingue and she has reinserted the island’s most marginalized group into a dynamic and impressive cultural scene.” (Logan J. Connors, The French Review, Vol. 97 (3), March, 2024)“The book not only shines a light on the mere existence of this theater, but also on the fact that 'enslaved people—mostly enslaved urban domestics—were an integral part of the story of public theatre in Saint-Domingue and not merely a part of the uncomfortable backdrop against which that story unfolded' ... . This fragment of an existence, told in passing, blooms into a rich and complex story, a painstakingly researched and detailed monograph.” (Jennifer E. Row, H-France Forum, Vol. 19 (5), 2024)“Public Theatre and the Enslaved People of Colonial Saint-Domingue makes this case convincingly and provides a grounding for further study that rigorously takes into account the significance of people of color in the making and viewing of theater in Saint-Domingue.” (Olivia Sabee, H-France Forum, Vol. 19 (5), 2024)“The author’s concluding sentence explicitly invites future research, which her book will surely inspire ... . In this groundbreaking book, Prest has discovered unknown content, expanded knowledge of understudied sources, and made innovative meaning from established material, ultimately expanding French and francophone studies in important new directions.” (Ashley M. Williard, H-France Forum, Vol. 19 (5), 2024)