From People S Theatre For Revolution To Popular Theatre For Reconstruction

Focusing on the experience of one of seven working groups at a theater-for-development workshop in Zimbabwe, this report details the process followed by many groups, and reveals some of the major learnings, dilemmas, contradictions, strengths, and limiting factors found in a practical village-based theater-for-development process. A brief discussion of theater-for-development (TFD) presents this drama form as an experimental collaborative process designed to take theater out of urban enclaves and make it accessible to the masses, presenting such common concerns as crop production, water shortages, immunization, literacy, and family planning. A day-by-day diary account of this working group illustrates an overview of, and specific tasks involved with, the production of a "theater pungwe"--people's theater. A TFD model lists educational objectives for the drama process and defines the workshop objectives, which are: (1) to train development cadres and theater artists in theater-for-development, and (2) to start a TFD program in Murewa area of Zimbabwe as a training and popular education/culture program. The report's concluding sections provide an analysis of the workshop, including constraints, relationship with villagers, organizational strategy, and team work. An extensive bibliography is included. (JB)

" The Playful Revolution is an entertaining journal.... exemplary... " --Illusions " The Playful Revolution breaks new ground by documenting developmental theatre in Asia in its current socio-political and economic ethos... " --New Theatre Quarterly "[T]his book is the account of a personal journey through Asia, a written documentary of a quest to find political theatre that really works and that possesses a vitality and passion that the contemporary Western theatre seems to have lost." --from the book In this groundbreaking book, van Erven reports on the liberation theatre movements throughout Asia, which include a diverse collection of creative artists whose politics range from liberal to revolutionary but who all share a common goal of using grass-roots theatre as an agent of liberation.

Applying research into assessments of community theatre, epidemiology, and young people's shared and private stories using a wide range of methodologies, this book explores the potential efficacy of community theatre to prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS in Tanzania with reference to several other comparable sites in Africa.

The Theatre for Development (TFD) is a learning strategy in which theatre is used to encourage communities to express their own concerns and think about the causes of their problems and possible solutions. This overview contributes to both the theory and practice of Theatre for Development. The author contextualises it historically within the evolving range of development theories, strategies and practices, notably including the now widely accepted notion of participatory approaches to achieving social change.

Theatre can play an essential role in addressing issues of power in social, political and cultural relationships, and acting as a catalyst for personal and societal change. This comprehensive and lively sourcebook advocates the use of theatre in participatory development as a way for groups to discover their own goals and aspirations, and to develop strategies for improving their lives based on need and experience. The first part presents 140 exercises designed to be used at all stages of participatory workshops ranging from initial ice-breakers and warm ups to exercises dealing with conflict resolution, power relations, issue-based work and project evaluation. Each exercise is explained in an easy-to-follow format and is followed by commentaries from experienced field practitioners. The second part contextualises theatre for development practice within current debates on empowerment and participation, and presents case studies illustrating the diverse contexts in which theatre for development can be used.

This book aims to offer a broad history of theatre in Africa. The roots of African theatre are ancient and complex and lie in areas of community festival, seasonal rhythm and religious ritual, as well as in the work of popular entertainers and storytellers. Since the 1950s, in a movement that has paralleled the political emancipation of so much of the continent, there has also grown a theatre that comments back from the colonized world to the world of the colonists and explores its own cultural, political and linguistic identity. A History of Theatre in Africa offers a comprehensive, yet accessible, account of this long and varied chronicle, written by a team of scholars in the field. Chapters include an examination of the concepts of 'history' and 'theatre'; North Africa; Francophone theatre; Anglophone West Africa; East Africa; Southern Africa; Lusophone African theatre; Mauritius and Reunion; and the African diaspora.

Trends in Twenty-First Century African Theatre and Performance is a collection of regionally focused articles on African theatre and performance. The volume provides a broad exploration of the current state of African theatre and performance and considers the directions they are taking in the 21st Century. It contains sections on current trends in theatre and performance studies, on applied/community theatre and on playwrights. The chapters have evolved out of a working group process, in which papers were submitted to peer-group scrutiny over a period of four years, at four international conferences. The book will be particularly useful as a key text for undergraduate and postgraduate courses in non-western theatre and performance (where this includes African theatre and performance), and would be a very useful resource for theatre scholars and anyone interested in African performance forms and cultures.

The Applied Theatre Reader is the first book to bring together new case studies of practice by leading practitioners and academics in the field and beyond, with classic source texts from writers such as Noam Chomsky, bell hooks, Mikhail Bakhtin, Augusto Boal, and Chantal Mouffe. This book divides the field into key themes, inviting critical interrogation of issues in applied theatre whilst also acknowledging the multi-disciplinary nature of its subject. It crosses fields such as: theatre in educational settings prison theatre community performance theatre in conflict resolution and reconciliation interventionist theatre theatre for development. This collection of critical thought and practice is essential to those studying or participating in the performing arts as a means for positive change.