What is Forum Theatre?

With excerpts from Theatre of Change: Theatre of the Oppressed as an aesthetic tool for social and political change 

by S. Leigh Thompson

 

Forum Theatre is probably the most common performative expression of Theatre of the Oppressed, and therefore the most familiar and popular of all of its forms. 

 

August Boal's Theatre of the Oppressed is often dubbed "a dress rehearsal for life". This dynamic form of interactive theatre is a fun, accessible way to create solutions for the daily challenges we face in our communities. This workshop will use games, dialogue, and interactive theatre to create opportunities for powerful learning and sharing to take place. 

 

The scenes explore issues of oppression, and most commonly the subjects and story lines originate from real experiences of the community members, developed during a series of workshops and rehearsals.  The performance serves as rehearsal for real life, where participants can develop tactics to fight the oppression they face.  Forum functions to foster dialogue and to generate ideas and possibilities for future action.