The Whole Group Together!
(Not Shown, Themba)

The following Acts and Scenes are a narrative of the events that took place with The Big Issue while on site in Cape Town, South Africa. The different acts outline the various transitions through the project that The Big Issue Team had; from the start of the project in Act 1, to making connections in Act 2, and finally getting the project rolling in Act 3. The Team took turns writing to give the reader different perspectives on events that occurred. To keep with the theme of our project of having the vendor’s voices be heard, each team member wrote a personal reflection for the scenes so that all experiences and feelings from the day could be conveyed.

Prologue

With so many customers moving to digital media The Big Issue plans to create an online marketplace where customers can purchase the magazine from a vendor of their choice. The Big Issue hopes that by moving sales online as well as continuing…Read More

Act 1: Beginning

This act is composed of four scenes that detail what happened when The WPI Big Issue Student Team started their project. Each scene takes place at the Big Issue and shows how the project advanced through working with a group of vendors…Read More

Act 2: Connecting, Becoming One

This act contains six scenes that highlight the emotional attachment that The Big Issue Team and the vendors began to create. These scenes features a number of meetings in which the team interviewed and videotaped all twelve vendors… Read More

Act 3: Setting the Wheels in Motion

Act 3 is the start of the end for The Big Issue team. There were many team dynamic changes, including losing one team member. Continuing work as a three member group The Big Issue team had to remain strong and work as hard as possible…Read More

Epilogue

Our project ended up having a much bigger impact on the The Big Issue than we could have ever anticipated. Trudy Vlok, the managing director, mentioned that she was skeptical of how this project would turn out because through her experience…Read More