Alien Bodies at Ellis Island. Cross-Cultural Pathways through Theatrical Performance in 1912

For millennia, theater with its divergent and polysemic perspective has been an artistic form of strong connection between actors and audience beyond the aesthetic experience. The sciences have provided an explanation of what happens in the minds and bodies of individuals who experience a holistic approach to intellectual, aesthetic and physical knowledge. On stage, actors and audience are actively involved and a mechanism of self-knowledge and other-knowledge is initiated. It insists on the strings of empathy as a form of resistance to individualisms, prejudices and mental closures. Twentieth-century scientific discoveries about the mechanical workings of "feeling" the other were anticipated by historical paths that were equally innovative but remained hidden in time. This article presents an interesting educational activity that combats immigrant prejudices and stereotypes by leveraging theatrical activity as a form of in-depth knowledge of the living conditions of foreigners to break the chain of hatred around them. The 1912 educational project presents interesting insights into educational theater to build community empowerment in the largest Western metropolis of the 20th century.