Nanay: Drawing a New Landscape of Diasporic Mothers

Abstract

Over the last three decades, migration from Asia has been increasingly feminized as women find work abroad, primarily in highly gendered labour markets such as domestic services and health care services, where they are forced to live apart from their own families. This paper examines Nanay (Mother) (2009), a testimonial play, as an example of documentary theatre. The play was written by two geographers, Geraldine Pratt and Caleb Johnston. It explores Filipina domestic workers’ experiences of maternal loss and separation, which constitute what I refer to as their “diasporic motherhood.” I focus not only on the play’s narrative but also on its multimedial and polyphonic form, and discuss how the play invites members of the Canadian public to engage actively with the migrant workers’ life stories, ethically connect with the migrant subjects, and envision an alternative future to the current exploitative condition.