Community Theatre

Community theatre is an important device for communities to collectively share stories, to participate in political dialogue, and to break down the increasing exclusion of marginalised groups of citizens. It is practised all over the world by growing numbers of people. Published at the same time as a video of the same name, this is a unique record of these theatre groups in action. Based on van Erven's own travels and experiences working with community theatre groups in six very different countries, this is the first study of their work and the methodological traditions which have developed around the world.

Redefining Theatre Communities explores the interplay between contemporary theatre and communities. It considers the aesthetic, social and cultural aspects of community-conscious theatre-making. It also reflects on transformations in structural, textual and theatrical conventions, and explores changing modes of production and spectatorship.

Theatre for Living is an essential resource for anyone interested in healthy communities.

This book helps you provide opportunities for young people to open up and explore their feelings through theatre, offering a safe place for them to air their views with dignity, respect, and freedom.

The non-stop hilarity of this Southern-fried farce highlights one day in the life of the Wilburn family of Mayhew, Arkansas. Meet D. Gene Wilburn, the owner and proprietor of the Reel 'Em Inn, the finest little fishing lodge in the Ozarks. Well, it used to be, but lately business is down, tourists are few, and the lone guest who's just checked in—an extremely jittery Carmine DeLuca from Chicago—is only there due to a location shift in the Witness Protection Program. Doesn't anybody just want to fish anymore? Certainly not D. Gene's frustrated wife, Wanelle, who's fed up with their lackluster romantic life. She's taken drastic steps to improve it through hypnotic suggestion and, for the life of him, D. Gene cannot understand why his pants keep falling down. D. Gene's feisty sister Maxie has her own problems, chief among them battling ageism to resume her career in law enforcement. She's determined to prove her worth by keeping Carmine DeLuca alive through the weekend—a task that's going to prove to be much harder than she bargained for since she keeps losing both her gun and the bullets. And she never anticipated the gangster Camine's been dodging for the last five years, Sonny Barbosa, is about to walk through the door, in hot pursuit of his sexy wife, Lola. Seems the headstong Lola has driven hundreds of miles to the lodge to follow her boytoy, D. Gene and Wanelle's son Ty. But Lola meets her match in Ty's seemingly innocent girlfriend, Jenna, whose patience has reached the breaking point after months of waiting for Ty to come home. In the deliciously funny romp that ensues, they all hide, lie, disguise themselves, cross-dress, and slam doors chasing one another, while trying to figure out the source of an increasingly awful stench. By then it's too late and the lodge is surrounded by vicious critters and hungry varmints that have followed the odor down from the hills. Yet by the delightfully chaotic climax of this one outrageous day, love blossoms, truths are revealed, and the lives of all—family, guests and gangsters alike—change in incredible and surprising ways. This side-splittingly funny Jones Hope Wooten comedy is guaranteed to win your audiences over—hook, line, and sinker!

This important contribution to the Theatre And series explores what the possibilities and limits of 'community' contribute to our understanding of theatre, and what theatrical practice and representation reveal about the tensions inherent in community settings. Drawing on case studies from wide-ranging locations, from the Middle East, to Latin America and South Asia, the text underlines the plurality of meanings associated with community, as well as the plurality of ways that theatre has engaged with those meanings. Interdisciplinary in its reach, this is the ideal companion for students of theatre and performance studies with an interest in applied theatre or performance in communities.

Each chapter of this book presents a different marginalized community and explores how it appropriates theatre for its own needs, which are often at odds with those of the powerful sponsoring organisations. This fresh approach to the topic provides the reader with an innovative, critical way of studying community theatre.