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Theatre productions and shows in schools to make politics more appealing to young people: a great objective of de Kiesmannen, but how effective is this creative approach? Researchers from Utrecht ľ¹Ï¸£ÀûÓ°ÊÓ asked hundreds of young people about their confidence and interest in the European Union before and after watching a production of de Kiesmannen. Indeed, young people seem to find European politics more understandable, interesting and impactful after watching the theatre performance or show.

Perception of young people
‘We know from research that Dutch pupils lag behind in knowledge about citizenship compared to their European peers,’ says theatre producer Dylan Ahern. ‘To boost that knowledge, and make young people aware of their fundamental rights and duties, de Kiesmannen developed an interactive lesson in which scientifically reliable information about the EU is presented in the form of a show.’ By responding to young people's perceptions, de Kiesmannen manage to generate interest among the target audience. Dylan says: ‘We find that young people particularly respond to topics that affect them, such as legislation around digitalisation to limit fake news, spying via TikTok, and hate speech on social media. But topics like biodiversity and climate policy also keep young people engaged.’

In the show, there is room for debate. ‘And we throw referendum balls into the room, which young people use to learn to make political choices. This method of engagement fits well with young people's perceptions and information processing. In this way, we hope young people will emerge as empowered citizens and weigh up the vote properly.’

Impact research
And to find out whether the theatre show contributes to this, Marij Swinkels, Lisanne de Blok and Madelijn Strick joined the project as scientists. This was possible thanks to a grant from Utrecht ľ¹Ï¸£ÀûÓ°ÊÓ's strategic theme Institutions for Open Societies. Public administration expert Marij Swinkels: ‘It was a nice intertwining of research and education. Students from our university distributed questionnaires and observed the room discussions with young people. They asked young people before and after the show what they think about the European Union, whether they feel European, and whether they feel they have an influence on the EU.’

‘We know from research that if you are exposed to politics at an early age, you become more politically active for the rest of your life. Not only in voting behaviour, but also on a smaller level.’

Politically active
Social scientist Madelijn Strick stresses the importance of young people getting politically involved: ‘We know from research that if you get in touch with politics early on, you become more politically active for the rest of your life. Not only in voting behaviour, but also on a smaller level. You might become active at your own school or in your own municipality. Or in your own friends' club. That gives you a good start to participate in society now, but also later.’

Results
After the theatre performance, young people found European politics more understandable and interesting, and their trust in politics increased. Also, fewer young people seemed to feel that politics has little impact on their lives and vice versa: how much influence they have on politics. Finally, there was an increase in the number of young people planning to vote after the theatre performance.

Hopeful
There was also a difference on an emotional level between before and after the performance. Young people seemed more hopeful, enthusiastic and full of energy. Nice results according to Madelijn: ‘We know that young people are increasingly worried. That's why it's nice to see that a theatre performance can make young people feel more enthusiastic and hopeful. This is just one performance, but if you were to do this more often, you might be able to make a positive contribution to young people's well-being and their confidence in the future. I think that's incredibly important.’

Theatre and science
The collaboration of theatre and science leaves them wanting more. Marij: ‘In the next project, we would like to help design a teaching programme or theatre show as early as the design stage. This is what we as a university also aim at: making science accessible to a wide audience, increasing the impact of research. Connecting performing arts and science skyrockets this. In a scientific sense, collaboration also delivers a lot, we are striking innovative paths.’

This is an abridged version of an article that previously appeared on the Utrecht ľ¹Ï¸£ÀûÓ°ÊÓ website.

Dr Madelijn Strick is a lecturer and researcher at the Faculty of Social Sciences
Dr Marij Swinkels is a lecturer and researcher at the Faculty of Law, Economics, Governance and Organisation
Dr Lisanne de Blok is a lecturer and researcher at the Faculty of Law, Economics, Governance and Organisation
Dylan Ahern is one of the initiators of de Kiesmannen, a creative agency for social innovation

Text: Mariska Meijvogel
Photo's: Bas de Brouwer, Maike Schwartz