Performance, Revolution, Pedagogy: Theatre and Its Objects
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.25071/1913-5874/37348Abstract
Augusto Boal, perhaps best known for his Theatre of the Oppressed (1985 [1979]), critiqued Aristotelian aesthetics that left spectators in passive states. He turned to Brechtian proposals that would move spectators to revolutionary action, but also became critical of any straightforward didactic approach to revolutionary theatre. The whole world was indeed a stage and all spectators were also potential actors or “spect-actors.” Boal’s work was shaped by the politics of his time and place: Brazil, Latin America, the Cold War politics of the 20th Century, the experiences of exile during Brazil’s military government, his return from exile, and the economic tyranny of the late 20th and early 21st centuries. In memory of Boal’s recent passing (1931-2009), this issue of InTensions features articles that examine theatre and performance as critical social practices and forms of analysis. Leaving to future scholarship the assessment of his life’s work, here we pay homage to Boal with articles and works that take as a starting point Boal’s central life practice: the braiding of performance and politics.
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