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1.1
drop, almost causing the theatre to go bankrupt. Consequently, the company decided to start investing in national theatre (pieces written by Brazilian dramaturgs) as
a move that could possibly save it from bankruptcy. The
new investment proved to be a success, opening up the
path for a national theatre scene. Boal then suggested the
creation of a Seminar in Dramaturgy at the Arena Theatre, which was quickly implemented and soon became
a national platform for many young playwrights. Many
successful productions were born from this Seminar and
now form part of the Arena Theatre of So Paulos nationalist phase repertoire. One of these productions was
Chapetuba Futebol Clube, written by Oduvaldo Vianna
Filho in 1959 and directed by Augusto Boal.[6]
Biography
Early life
1.2
1.3 Exile
A new military regime started in Brazil in 1964 with a
coup d'tat supported by the Brazilian elite, the industrialists, the military, as well as by the United States,[7] Boals
teachings were controversial, and as a cultural activist he
was seen as a threat by the Brazilian military regime. In
1971, Boal was kidnapped o the street, arrested, tortured, and eventually exiled to Argentina,[8] where he
stayed for ve years. During those ve years, Boal published two books: Torquemada (1971) and his much acclaimed Theatre of the Oppressed (1973). Torquemada
is about the Brazilian military regimes systematic use of
torture in prison.[9] Boal takes the name of the leading
gure of the Spanish Inquisition, Tomas de Torquemada
as an example of historical forms of systematic torture.
In Theatre of the Oppressed Boal develops a theatrical
method based on Pedagogy of the Oppressed, a book by
the Brazilian educator and writer Paulo Freire (who was
also a good friend of Boal).[10]
Work at the Arena Theatre of So Boals method (which has been implemented in various
communities around the world) seeks to transform auPaulo
diences into active participants in the theatrical experience. Boal argues that traditional theatre is oppressive since spectators usually do not get a chance to express themselves, and that a collaboration between both
parties, in contrast allows spectators to perform actions
that are socially liberating. The method, as Boal liked
to explain, seeks to transform spectators into spectactors.[11] When the political climate in Brazil forced
Boal into exile in 1971, he initially went to Peru and
then Argentina, where he completed and published his
seminal theoretical work The Theatre of the Oppressed
and consolidated his conscientizaacao (consciousness-
1 BIOGRAPHY
raising) theatre work based on the idea of Brazilian educationalist Paulo Freire.[12] Freires methods were a revolt
against the elitist top-down approach to education and
he advocated critical awareness based education models.
Boals work in Peru with the ALFIN project, a movement
which sought to use a range of languages including artistic languages to eradicate illiteracy, developed his ideas
and methodology away from the agit-prop of his Brazilian Arena Theatre days and sought to engage theatre as a
pedagogical tool. Crucial to this time was Boals attempts
to break down the divisions between spectator and actor.
It is around this time that invented the term spect-actor,
a term that he saw as establishing the frameworks within
which he wished to work.[13] He saw that the passivity
of the spectator could be broken down by the following
steps by which the spectator becomes the spect-actor: 1)
Knowing the body (by body he means both the individual body and the collective body in a Marxist sense)
2) Making the body expressive 3) Using theatre as a language 4) Using theatre as discourse
After living in Argentina, Boal travelled to other countries in South America such as Peru and Ecuador, where
he worked with people in small and usually poor communities that dealt with conicts such as civil wars and lack
of government attention. Boal was of the opinion that
only the oppressed are able to free the oppressed. In Peru,
Boal practised his Forum theatre method, in which spectator replaces actor to determine the solution to a given
problem presented by the actor, which can also be a real
problem someone in the community is facing. Boal also
lived in Paris, France, for a number of years, where he
created several Centers for the Theatre of the Oppressed,
directed plays, and also taught classes at the Sorbonne
University. Boal created the rst International Festival
for the Theatre of Oppressed in 1981.[9]
While Boal was in exile, his very close friend and Brazilian musician Chico Buarque wrote him a letter that would
later result in the Chorinho hit called "Meu Caro Amigo"
or My Dear Friend (1976). In this song, Buarque tells
his friend about the situation in Brazil at the time, addressing the military dictatorship in a very subtle but
clever way (due to censorship issues, many artists could
not express themselves freely).[14] The melody of the song
is very happy and upbeat while the lyrics explain:
of
the
3.1
1.5
Death
Inuences
Augusto Boal presenting his workshop on the Theatre of the Oppressed. Riverside Church, May 13, 2008.
3.1
Boal is also known to quote William Shakespeare's 3.2 Games For Actors and Non-Actors (London: Routledge, 1992; Second Edition
Hamlet, in which Hamlet argues that theatre is like a mirror that reects our virtues and defects equally. Although
2002)
Boal nds this quote beautiful, he likes to think of theatre
as a mirror in which one can reach in to change reality and This is probably Augusto Boals most practically inuento transform it.[19]
tial book, in which he sets down a brief explanation of his
theories, mostly through stories and examples of his work
in Europe, and then explains every drama exercise that he
has found useful in his practice. In contrast to Theatre of
3 Published works
the Oppressed, it contains little academic theory and many
practical examples for drama practitioners to use even if
3.3
4 Recognition
This book re-evaluates the practices commonly associated with the Theatre of the Oppressed for a new purpose.
It has been argued that Boal contradicts himself with this
take on his work,[25] as it mostly concerns itself with creating harmony within society, whereas his early work was
concerned with rebellion and upheaval. Boal states that,
Theatre is the passionate combat of two human beings
on a platform.[25] However, Boals works can be seen as
a progression and exploration of a Left Wing world view
rather than a unied theory. In the context of those underrepresented in a society, his methodology can be used as
a weapon against oppressors. In the context of those in a
society who are in need of catharsis for the sake of their
own integration into it, it can be switched round to empower that individual to break down internal oppressions
that separate that individual from society. The theories
have been useful in the pioneering eld of drama therapy
and have been applied by drama practitioners. Boal states
in his work that there are three properties of the aesthetic
space. First, is plasticity. He says that one can be without
being. Objects can acquire dierent meaning such as an
old chair representing a kings throne. He states that only
duration counts and location can be changed. Second, is
that the aesthetic space is dichotomic and it creates dichotomy. This idea suggests that there is a space within
a space. The stage is in front of the audience and the actor is creating his own space. Third, is telemicroscopic.
This idea creates the idea that it is impossible to hide on
stage. Every aspect of the space is seen and it makes the
far away close-up.[25]
3.4
REFERENCES
Other books
5 See also
Applied Drama
Community theatre
Paulo Freire
Playback Theatre
6 References
[1] Pedagogy & Theatre of the Oppressed: A Brief Biography
of Augusto Boal
7 External links
Media related to Augusto Boal at Wikimedia Commons
Quotations related to Augusto Boal at Wikiquote
International Theatre Institute - Author of the World
Theatre Day Message 2009 Augusto Boal
International Theatre of the Oppressed Organisation.
Theatre of the Oppressed Laboratory - New York
City worked with Boal from 1991
Augusto Boal Interview on Democracy Now! in
2005
Augusto Boal, Founder of the Theatre of the Oppressed, Dies at 78 Interview on Democracy Now!
in 2007
[10] http://www.spunk.org/texts/art/sp000338.html
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Text
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