The Courage to Become

No-one working in the fields of theatre and politics, applied theatre, theatre history, theatre and performance theory, and transdisciplinary enquiry across the borders of theatre, society, ›development‹, sociology and social practice from the late twentieth century on can avoid the centrality of Augusto Boal’s theatre practice and methodology, its application and implications. This book seeks to outline a number of framing contexts which have shaped this work and to draw from them conclusions about its relevance beyond its original context. It aims to open up questions about Boal’s work in the following areas: Social and political: how do Boal’s practice and premises inflect how we might or should conceptualise and structure society, individuals, power relations, economies? Critical pedagogies: how does Boal’s work and its relational nexus, including for example Freire and Fals Borda, demonstrate and/or develop the understanding and application of practices of learning, understanding, growing and collaborating? The body: in which dimensions does Boal’s practice illuminate and open up somatic practices and aesthetic sensibilities which are crucial to social, political and environmental relationship for the 21st century? Thus it traces a trajectory from the roots of Augusto Boal’s work in revolutionary theatre praxis to the autopoietic theatre work of the 21st century. Birgit Fritz is a visiting tutor in transcultural theatre and theatre action research and a high-school teacher. She studied extensively with Boal, is part of the Jana Sanskriti Network and founded the CTO-Vienna, TdU-Wien. Her publications include the handbook "InExActArt – The Autopoietic Theatre of Augusto Boal", and translations into German of Augusto Boal’s autobiography "Hamlet and the Baker’s Son" and Sanjoy Ganguly’s book "Jana Sanskriti – Forum Theatre and Democracy in India". She lives and works near Vienna, Austria. Lana Sendzimir studied Social Sciences and Humanities before getting her Masters Degree in Theatre and Media for Development in the UK. She continued her studies in The Theatre of the Oppressed by training with Birgit Fritz, as well as many other practitioners in the field. Her work has lead her to study movement and bodywork in a variety of modalities, for a deeper exploration and awareness of the body and its healing through creative expression and touch. Ralph Yarrow is Emeritus Professor of Drama and Comparative Literature, University of East Anglia, Norwich UK. He taught French language/literature for 15 years, then retrained in drama practice and Indian theatre, later moving full-time to Drama. He has directed productions in the UK, India, South Africa and Germany. Books include "Improvisation in Drama, Theatre and Performance" (with Anthony Frost, Palgrave 1990, 2005, 2015); "Consciousness, Literature and Theatre" (with Peter Malekin); "Indian Theatre; and Sacred Theatre" (with Franc Chamberlain, Bill Haney, Carl Lavery and Peter Malekin).