Theater and performance have always offered a tool for people to remember and explore the past, to better understand the present, and chart a course into the future. Performance offers unique opportunities to transport viewers to a different place and time and into the minds and experiences of other people. Since 2005 the award-winning History Alive! theater program at the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History has brought together more than one million visitors to explore new worlds, confront difficult truths, and intimately connect people and ideas to a new understanding of our past. The program uses the strengths of the performing arts to get people talking about history in pursuit of a more humane future. The course examines program research and development, goals, and outcomes, and includes viewing performances and participating in discussions with the program cast and guest lecturers.
