Theatre of the Oppressed

by Augusto Boal, Charles A. McBride

Overview

"Boal and his work are marvelous examples of the post-modern situation-its problems and its opportunities. Twice exiled, Boal is 'at home' now wherever he finds himself to be. He makes a skeptical, comic, inquisitive and finally optimistic theatre involving spectators and performers in the search for community and integrity. This is a good book to be used even more than to be read." - Richard Schechner

"Augusto Boal's achievement is so remarkable, so original and so groundbreaking that I have no hesitation in describing the book as the most important theoretical work in the theatre in modern times - a statement I make with having suffered any memory lapse with respect to Stanislavsky, Artaud or Grotowski." - Goerge E. Wellwarth

Originally basing himself at the Arena Stage in Sao Paolo, Brazil, Augusto Boal developed a series of imaginative theatre exercises which promote awareness of one's social situation and its limitations, individual attitudes, and even how our bodies are bound by tradition. Boal is continued his explorations in Paris, where he directed Le CEDITADE (Centre d'Etude et de Diffusion des Techniques Actives d'Expression - Methode Boal), in addition to traveling and lecturing extensively in other countries. On May 2, 2009, Boal died at age 78 in Rio de Janeiro.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780930452490
Publisher:	Theatre Communications Group
Publication date:	01/01/1993
Series:	Pluto Classics Series
Edition description:	Tcg ed.
Pages:	208
Sales rank:	421,693
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.60(d)

About the Author

Augusto Boal (1931 - 2009) was a renowned dramatist and the author of several works on politics and theatre.

Table of Contents

Preface to 2008 edition
Preface to 2000 edition
Preface to 1974 edition
1. Aristotle’s Coercive System of Tragedy
2. Machiavelli and the Poetics of Virtu
3. Hegel and Brecht: The Character as Subject or the Character as Object?
4. Poetics of the Oppressed
5. Development of the Arena Theater of Sao Paulo
Appendices
Index

Editorial Reviews

""'Boal's terrific energy came from his The book that started a revolution in modern theatre.faith in the creativity, spontaneity and ability of all people, however underprivileged, to change their situation' "" - Guardian ""'Should be read by everyone in the world of theatre who has any pretensions at all to political commitment'"" - John Arden, playwright ""'[His] achievement is so remarkable, so original and so ground-breaking that I have no hesitation in describing the book as the most important theoretical work on the theatre in modern times' "" - George Wellwarth, author of Modern Drama and the Death of God (University of Wisconsin Press, 1986) ""'Oppression, according to Augusto Boal, is when one person is dominated by the monologue of another and has no chance to reply. Boal's life is devoted to giving those who are in this one-down position the tools with which to express themselves and discover a way out of their powerlessness'"" - The Harvard Gazette ""'An affable intellectual and an effervescent teacher, [Boal] was a theatrical Johnny Appleseed who spent his later years spreading his doctrines of the theater as a land of equal opportunity for professionals and nonprofessionals alike'"" - The New York Times

From the Publisher