Boal: Theater of the oppressed
- Boal is, seemingly, arguing for a particular kind of theatrical literacy, which he asserts will work to emancipate the oppressed/repressed; do you feel that this postulation is plausible? That is to say, do you agree that his conception of a theater (for) of the oppressed can truly work to emancipate oppressed, marginalized students?
- It has been passionately and cogently argued Boal, as well as by an esteemed group of anti-colonial, feminist, and critical race theorist, that oppressed people, irrespective of geographical locale, share a common loss of control over their bodies. What does this mean?
- And, how can a theater of the oppressed work to empower the oppressed, so that they can repudiate their position as spectators and instead become protagonist (thus, effectively, reclaiming their bodies)?
Theater of the oppressed can work to empower the oppressed so they can toss the spectator position aside and become protagonists and effectively reclaim their bodies by helping the oppressed interact with their bodies and using theater as a form of literacy to help the oppressed express themselves. We do not choose what social class we are born into and we have no control over which one we are placed into at birth. Though we have the ability to grow and move our way between classes, the journey we make influences the perspectives and ideals that we ultimately believe in. For the oppressed, they have a very specific point of view and trying to teach them literacy using symbols that are familiar to the middle class or ruling class will not have as strong of an effect on them as expressing it to them in terms they understand. By using methods like photo-romance helps them see the way they would perceive a scene and when compared to another scene see the class differences and analyze the way that other classes might view the same situation. Additionally, using analytical theater, they can strip their beliefs of what different societal roles are represented by. It is too easy to be caught under the belief that a policeman is characterized by a set of definers and we often neglect that they too are real people that are also capable of crime. Analytical theater helps to identify the definers we use to characterize people and helps us see the different combinations of situations that can occur – we don’t get stuck in our linear belief of one’s role. Using theater opens doors to the oppressed by allowing them to put on different masks and by exploring different roles and classes in an environment that feels safe where they can analyze and grow through symbols and definitions that they create themselves instead of definitions forced upon them by the ruling class.
ReplyDelete- Kathy Shen
In The Theater of the Oppressed, Boal argues that theatre, as an ordinary practice, is often used as a tool of opresión where those in power (usually the aristocracy) push their agendas by using it to purge the masses of the power to resist and reveal against the status quo. According to Boal, there is a division between actors and spectators. Whereas actors get to speak (and in this way perpetuate the dominant class’s ideology), the spectators is left to observe and accept what they hear and see. The Theatre of the Oppressed in contrast, is then, a practice where theatre becomes a tool of empowerment. The boundary between actor and the passive spectator is broken down. Spectators become active participants in the performance; instead of spectators. During the performance, spectators can intervene in the play, suggest alternative acts for the actors to perform, or they can get onto stage themselves and act. Actors, on the other hand, need to respond to the audience’s demands; they become facilitators, encouraging spectators to become actors, and act out roles that the specators ask them to.
ReplyDeleteI agree that new practices bring out new aesthetics and ways of responding to the work of art, which consequently brings change. As a scholar and artist, I understand the necessity of using new methodologies to approach art making in a western-centered discipline where certain art practices are often left out of the “Fine Arts” discourse.
By calling the spectators to physically move into the stage, and in a sense “put their bodies inside,” the theater of the oppressed empowers the oppressed because if breaks the dynamics that have characterized opressed/opressor relationships. This, I belive, is a very effective way of reclaiming the body.