Theatre as a Model for Dialogue and Engagement, with Chad Swan-Badgero
In this episode of Storylinking, I had the pleasure of speaking with Chad Swan-Badgero, founder and artistic director of Peppermint Creek Theatre and program manager for the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs. For over 30 years, Chad has been using theater not only as a form of artistic expression but as a spark for dialogue around complex societal issues. His insights into audience engagement and participatory storytelling offer valuable lessons for anyone looking to build community through narrative.
“I stand so solidly behind the theater as a model for us to have really hard conversations in the world. It’s like this safety net between us and what that conversation might look like. And maybe if we see enough of those stories, we’ll be brave enough to have the conversation in real life.”
Story as a foundation for dialogue
Peppermint Creek Theatre Company began in 1995 with a simple goal: to put on a show. Over time, this grew into a nonprofit mission to produce “classic and contemporary theatre that addresses vital societal issues, raises awareness, and encourages dialogue while entertaining.”
The process of selecting stories that fulfill this mission has evolved alongside the company itself. As Chad explains in our interview, “When we were first getting started as a company, I was much more focused on my own feelings about that. As far as like, what do I think the issues are that we're grappling with?” Over the years, the company has expanded its approach, drawing on the perspectives of more stakeholders to spark conversation at the intersection of our broader community and critical issues
I hear in this an echo of the storytelling journey many of us take as organizational leaders and community builders. It’s natural to start with our own experiences, but stories aren’t just about expressing our own perspectives. They’re an opportunity to connect with the needs, emotions, and experiences of the people we aim to reach. By considering the current state of conversation in our communities, we can help to shape further opportunities for meaningful dialogue and engagement.
Chad emphasizes the importance of tackling topics that matter in the moment, steering clear of redundancy: “If someone already did Annie, we don’t have to do Annie,” he shared with a laugh, highlighting Peppermint Creek’s commitment to presenting narratives that provoke thought and dialogue rather than repeating what’s already been done.
Producing ‘What the Constitution Means to Me’
Peppermint Creek stages ‘What the Constitution Means to Me’
One of Peppermint Creek Theatre’s recent productions, ‘What the Constitution Means to Me’, is a strong illustration of the company’s mission to create a context for dialogue and community engagement. The play, written by Heidi Schreck, explores the contradictions and complexities of the U.S. Constitution, particularly as they relate to the experiences of women. It’s a work that raises tough questions while inviting the audience to reflect on their own relationship with this foundational document.
For Chad, producing this play during an election year heightened the stakes: “We opened the play on Friday, just three days after the election. I’ll confess, I thought the election was going to go differently, and I envisioned the show as a celebration of electing our first female president. But the result didn’t match that vision, and it forced us as a cast and crew to rethink how we approached the story.” This unexpected shift created an opportunity for the company to channel their emotions into the performance, ultimately creating an experience that was both timely and transformative for audiences.
Chad shared how audience reactions varied each night, illustrating the raw and unpredictable nature of live theater: “Opening night, people were angry—yelling, booing, reacting loudly. The next night, the audience was so sad, with people crying and asking if the show would make them feel better. Each night, we encountered a new mix of emotions, which gave the cast and crew a focus and a reminder of why we do this work.”
From my perspective, this is the heart of any community-driven storytelling effort: designing a framework sturdy enough to hold space for dialogue but flexible enough to adapt to the emotions and perspectives audiences bring. It’s not about controlling the outcome—it’s about creating the conditions where genuine engagement can happen.
Challenges and Rewards of Community Engagement
Inviting participation begins with recognizing that audience members come with different needs and levels of readiness to engage. While everyone may share the same physical space in the theater, they are often at very different points in their personal journeys. Understanding this diversity is key to creating meaningful opportunities for connection and dialogue.
It’s important to carefully consider how the choices we make in structuring engagement will resonate with audience members and meet them where they are. Peppermint Creek has explored a wide range of possible approaches over the years, with varying degrees of success. “We used to do talkbacks after every show, but we found that it often led to surface-level chatter rather than meaningful dialogue.” In contrast, productions like ‘What the Constitution Means to Me’ invite participation directly within the structure of the play, creating a more connected space to help individuals make the shift from passive audience member to active participant.
In my experience outside of the theater, we can do our best to create these spaces and structures, and we’ll still fall short a good portion of the time. No single effort will connect with everyone, and that’s okay. What matters most is the willingness to try new approaches, observe the outcomes, and adjust as needed. When we approach engagement with curiosity and a commitment to learning, we open the door to deeper connections and more meaningful interactions. Even when an idea doesn’t work as planned, it’s a step toward understanding the community we’re working to serve.
Building trust over time
Thinking about what it means to grow engagement gets easier when we step back to take a wider view. No single production or story is going to completely satisfy the need for dialogue in our communities; we have to work together over the long term.
For a theater company like Peppermint Creek, your most immediate frame of reference might be your ticket to a show. But in reality, attending one such performance means joining a community of artists and audience members that has been growing steadily for decades. On any given evening, not everyone in the audience will feel ready to engage at the same level, and that’s okay. The beauty of Peppermint Creek’s approach is that they create opportunities to come back—whether through a casual conversation in the lobby, ongoing reflection after the show, or a different production later in the season.
This idea parallels the cycles of trust and engagement that researchers Eriks Dunens and Jody Horntvedt described in an earlier episode of Storylinking. These cycles are foundational to building meaningful relationships within communities, but they take time, persistence, and a willingness to adapt to changing needs. Engagement isn’t a one-time effort. It’s the accumulation of consistent actions that lay the groundwork for future connections, conversations, and collaborations.
Theatre offers a direct and powerful context for this type of work, but I would encourage you to further consider Chad’s work as a source of inspiration across a wide range of disciplines. Even if individual efforts don’t meet your expectations right away, stay committed to your long term vision. If you can keep coming back show after show, season after season, you’ll have an opportunity to create the space for dialogue that your community needs.
Listen to the full episode above, or subscribe to Storylinking on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your favorite podcast platform for more conversations that explore the power of storytelling to build community.
Additional Resources
Peppermint Creek Theatre: http://peppermintcreek.org
Contact Chad: office@peppermintcreek.org
