How call-and-response facilitates restorative dialogic listening: reconstructing a transitional justice hearing as participatory performance

Transitional justice mechanisms may be designed to foster restorative listening, yet their legal frameworks and scale can inadvertently inhibit the courageous, dialogic listening that healing requires. This article argues that reconstructing a transitional justice hearing as a participatory performance – organized through call-and-response – can help reconfigure roles and conditions for restorative listening in small groups. Drawing on Call and Response: Who Listens to César (2024–25), a performance that reimagines a 2022 JEP (Special Jurisdiction for Peace) hearing on hostage-taking in Colombia, we analyse how headphone verbatim performance, choral music, somatic preparation, and facilitated dialogic talkbacks create opportunities for community members to ‘perform listening’ – not just receive testimony but also articulate responses that validate, question, and seek repair. Through two stages of work in Montreal and Bogotá, we trace how orchestrated calls-and-responses made unprocessed grief, responsibility, and avoidance come to the surface, while also modelling a community-based approach to recovery. We reflect on benefits, risks, and ethical considerations, and conclude with implications for future arts-based interventions in transitional justice.