Theatre Matters Performance and Culture on the World Stage

Theater, in a variety of forms and contexts, can make, and indeed has made, positive political and social interventions in a range of developing cultures around the world. In this book a distinguished team of theater historians and dramatists explore how theater has a dynamic and often difficult relationship with societies and states, arguing positively that theatrical activity can make a difference. The collection begins with a foreword by Wole Soyinka and, throughout the volume, specially chosen plays, projects and movements are examined in countries such as Brazil and Argentina, Nigeria, Eritrea and South Africa, India and the Caribbean.

Theatre, in a variety of forms and contexts, can make, and indeed has made, positive political and social interventions in a range of developing cultures across the world. In this book a distinguished team of theatre historians and dramatists explores how theatre has a dynamic and often difficult relationship with societies and states, arguing positively that theatrical activity can make a difference. The collection begins with a foreword by Wole Soyinka and, through the volume, specially chosen plays, projects and movements are examined, embracing a variety of theatrical forms from conventional text to on-site developmental work. The communities addressed range from the national to the local, from middle-class elites to the economically dispossessed in countries such as Brazil and Argentina, Nigeria, Eritrea and South Africa, and India and the Caribbean countries.

Foreword: a letter from Kingston Wole Soyinka; 1. Introduction Jane Plastow; 2. 'The Revolution as Muse': drama as surreptitious insurrection in a post-colonial, military state Femi Osofisan; 3. Making theatre for a change: two plays of the Eritrean liberation struggle Jane Plastow and Solomon Tsehaye; 4. Race matters in South African theatre Ian Steadman; 5. Dreams of violence: moving beyond colonialism in Canadian and Caribbean drama Christopher Innes; 6. The French-speaking Caribbean: journeying from the native land Carole-Anne Upton; 7. 'Binglishing' the stage: a generation of Asian theatre in England Jatinder Verma; 8. Popular theatre for the building of social awareness: the Indian experience Jacob Srampickal and Richard Boon; 9. The promise of performance: True Love/Real Love Paul Heritage; 10. Making America or making revolution: the theatre of Ricardo Halac in Argentina George Woodyard.

This book focuses on how theatre can make, and indeed has made, positive political and social interventions in a range of developing cultures. Essays examine particular plays, projects or movements from areas such as South America, Africa, the Caribbean and India. Contributors include Nobel Laureate Wole Soyinka.