Theatre of the Oppressed
Theatre of the Oppressed is a "play" that Augusto Boal founded in the 1960s. It promotes oppression, inequality, and the audiences analyses the world that they live in. It influenced a lot of people and lets the audience become active by becoming 'Spect-actors'.
There are different types of ways to perform this. Boal created and performed these techniques, hoping for a change in the society. The types of ways includes:
- Image theatre: There aren't many dialogues in this technique, and it is rather to be shown than told.
- Forum theatre: This is the most common and popular way. 'Spect-actors' are included in this, in which people in the audience could stop the performance, and suggest a way to stop oppression in the performance. The actors continue the performance with the way the 'Spect-actor' suggests, and it will help the audience get involved with the play, as well as letting the audience understand more about oppression.
- Invisible theatre: The performance would be performed, usually in a mall or on the street. No one knows that this is a performance, and the actors will pretend to be oppressed in a sort of way. This can also be viewed as a test on how people react to oppression.
- Newspaper theatre: This technique is like a lesson: 'Spect-actors' will read a piece of text out loud and they will suggest ways to solve the scene.