The Theatre of the Oppressed in Practice Today: An Introduction to the Work and Principles of Augusto Boal

(Hardback, 2nd edition)

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How has the work and legacy of Augusto Boal's Theatre of the Oppressed been interpreted and practised around the world What does it look like in different working contexts The second edition of this book provides an accessible introduction to the political and artistic principles Boal's techniques are founded on, tracking exemplary practice from around the globe.

Using detailed contemporary case histories, theatre artist, scholar and activist Ali Campbell demonstrates how the underlying principles of Boal's practice are today enacted in the work of - among others - an urban network (Theatre of the Oppressed NYC), a rural and developmental theatre organisation (Jana Sanskriti, West Bengal), Boals original company CTO Rio (Brazil), and a theatre-based group led by learning-disabled adults in the UK (The Lawnmowers Independent Theatre Company). The book concludes with a series of conversations between Campbell and international exponents of the work, envisioning futures for the Theatre of the Oppressed in the shifting political, educational and artistic contexts of the 21st century.

This new second edition includes:

- A new foreword by Professor Caoimhe McAvinchey (Queen Mary, University of London, UK)
- An additional conversation in Part 3 with internationally renowned artist and activist Tony Cealy
- A completely new Part 4, featuring creative encounters with groups of academics, artists, Indigenous activists and community multipliers from across the Amazonas region of Brazil. This section uses Ali Campbells technique of Frame Throwing to render participants experiences into expertise and extrapolates a recipe for the adaptation and customisation of the technique
- A new and final Part 5, told in the first person by the academic and Kuringa (Joker) Annie Martins, an Indigenous woman and theatre activist, who vividly addresses the challenges all practitioners face as they seek to decolonise their work

Reviews

Distilled from a lifetime of practice, teaching and reflection with groups around the world, this brilliant book is a must read for Theatre for Change workers everywhere. -- Geraldine Ling MBE; Founding Artistic Director; The Lawnmowers Independent Theatre Company
This book is a profound praxis for peace, precisely because it disturbs: it is a work of clarity, written with the honesty of a friend. Ali Campbell explores Augusto Boals Theatre of the Oppressed with the urgent question: "How then shall we Live -- Professor Alison Phipps OBE; UNESCO Chair in Refugee Integration through Languages and the Arts; University of Glasgow
Ali Campbells text is a fitting contribution to the legacy of Boals offering of the Theatre of the Oppressed. Part memoir, part story-telling, it enunciates the powerful principles and social activism of the method through real world global contexts and engaging personal interviews with key TO practitioners. * Simon Floodgate, University of Reading, UK *

Author Bio

Ali Campbell was trained and mentored by Boal and remains one of the key exponents of the Theatre of the Oppressed working today. He has adapted Boals techniques of Forum and Image theatre across a broad range of groups and contexts in Europe and Africa. He is Emeritus Professor of Applied Performance Practice at Queen Mary, University of London, UK, the leading Department for research across all UK Drama Departments and Conservatoires.