Sign Up Now
Get instant access to over 1 million+ study documents
OR
Already registered? click here to login
By creating your account, you agree to our terms of service, privacy policy and student honor code.
Theater of the Opressed
History of Theatre of the Oppressed: Critique of the Community Theatre as a Means of Empowerment in Social Work: A Case Study of Women's Community Theatre
Similar to institutional and professional theatre, community theatre uses a combination of mime, ritual dance, song and drama as a means of communicating messages, knowledge and ideology to the audience (Mulenga, 1993). Nonetheless, community theatre does not purport traditional theatrical components and professional stage production. Rather, this kind of theatre reportedly takes inspiration from the community's life story (Erven, 2001; Mda, 1993; Miller, 1979). In this way, common communal issues are brought to the forefront bringing those who participate as actors or audience members into the "socio-political arena" (Boehm & Boehm, 2003).
Critique
In Boehm and Boehm's 1993 article, "Community Theatre as a Means of Empowerment in Social Work: A Case Study of Women's Community Theatre," the authors posit the general acceptance of empowerment as a social work construct (Guitierrez, 1994; Jackson & Morris, 1999; Rappaport, 1987; Rose, 2000; Solomon, 1976). Although many themes have been posited as to what empowerment entails, a widely accepted...
Moreover, one of the reported goals of empowerment is to aid oppressed groups who have suffered systematic disenfranchisement and loss of power to develop a greater understanding and address the role of powerlessness in maintaining personal as well as societal problems (Itzhaky & Gerber, 1999).
Boehm and Boehm maintain that community theatre supports the principles of empowerment on many levels including personal, group and community (2003). As evidence of the posited theory, researchers conducted a case study of six women guided by a director and a social worker through the process of establishing and participating in community in Israel. According to the findings, participants were empowered by the process through the evolution of the development of the theatre project. Researchers noted significant increases in mastery, critical awareness, inner voice expression, collective empowerment, propensity to act, and self-esteem that according to their findings were a significant manifestation of empowerment as operationally defined. Through the use of qualitative methodology, the women's activities were empowered as a result of participating in the…
Bibliography
Boehm, A., & Boehm, E. (2003). Community theatre as a means of empowerment in social work: A case study of women's community theatre. Journal of Social Work, 3. 283-300.
Erven, e. (2001). Community theatre: Global perspectives. London: Routledge.
Gutierrez, L. (19940. Beyond coping: an empowerment perspective on stressful life events. Journal of Sociology and Social Welfare, 21(3), 201-219.
Itzhaky, H., & Gerber, P. (1999). The connection between universal values and empowerment: implications for social work practice. In W. Shera and L. Wells (eds). Empowerment Practice in social work: Developing richer conceptual foundations. Toronto: Canadian Scholars' Press.
Theatre Today & Theatre for Me Theatre, as a genre of creative expression, is still very much valid in the 21st century. It originated thousands of years ago, and still draws crowds in the 21st century around the world. Many of the classic plays of many cultures are still performed, as well as adaptations of other forms (such as films, songs, etc.) are transformed into plays that interest and captivate audiences.
Most of Fugard's plays stand as a proof of reality reflected in theatre as an art of real life. Athol Fugard's play My Children! My Africa reflects a cruel reality of his times: South Africa's dehumanizing system of apartheid laws that denied freedom to blacks. Worried that his country would never live in peace, Fugard wrote the play in hopes that the polarization between blacks and whites would end and
Theatre of Dionysus: Athens, Greece General history about the theater itself and the history of theater in Greece The evolution of theater in Greece, and therefore, theater's evolution as an art form over the course of early Western history, may be directly linked to the festivals of Dionysus of the land. Dionysus was the Grecian god of wine and misrule. Over the course of performances of tragedy and comedy written and designed
Theater Dimly lit prison kitchen. It is after hours, and only a skeleton crew is on hand: RAY and ANGELA. They are inside the kitchen, but the spotlight is on TOM and GARY, who sit across from each other in the dining room just outside. Characters TOM: Inmate at Phoenix Prison Complex, serving a life sentence for murder. GARY: Inmate at Phoenix Prison Complex, serving 15 years for assault and battery. ANGELA: Kitchen worker, 30-year-old
Towards the end of the play, after Argan finds out about the intentions of his wife and those of his daughter, he agrees for Angelique to marry Cleante, the man she really loves, as long as he agrees to become a doctor. Argan's brother has an even better idea by proposing that Argan be made a doctor himself. To this end, he calls some gypies that perform dances and rituals
William Shakespeare, Christopher Marlowe and Moliere, brought us so many masterpieces not only valuable as works of art, but also as very important sources of understanding the society in the Renaissance. More important, when reading or wathching these plays, we can understand today the universality of Man. We are not allowed to forget the Asian theater which bears the stamp of the philosophical and religious ideas and beliefs of the times