हिंदी में पढ़ने के लिए यहाँ क्लिक करें
Background
The last few years have seen rapid transitions in every aspect of human lives. Various contemporary socio-political arenas have been trying to understand the effects this has had on what we mean by community. What constitutes a community and how has it adapted to these changes? Attempts at trying to grasp the nature of this social glue often leads us to the gateway of cultural work.
Is Culture just Art and Architecture or is there more to it? How does it affect lives? Does it only exist in the past, to be observed from a distance? The irony is embedded in everything around us, as indigenous and folk forms of expression, like Warli Art, is being capitalised upon to be put on objects, like laptop covers and backpacks. Does THIS constitute culture? An entire nation gets busy in celebrating Karva Chauth while communal lynching, violence and deaths due to COVID mismanagement are camouflaged with celebrations using lamps, drums and thalis. Or is THIS the new normal for Culture?
Theatre has always been synonymous with culture- not just a form through performance, but something posing with its dual nature as both the mirror and the window. Just like any other journey, Culture moves and grows without structural frameworks. It is non-linear and chaotic in its extension.
Theatre of the oppressed and the Culture of dialogue
Theatre of the Oppressed is a praxis based on a political view of equality and democratic processes. Across the world different movements, communities and organisations have used it for initiating shifts.
Dialogues : real, vital and inclusionary- These are crucial aspects holding the democracies, present and future. TOTO, both as an approach and a technique facilitates a shift in behaviour and perception of individuals and collectives, enabling greater ownership and hands on approach to validate and support diverse dialogues.
The Theatre of the Oppressed practice deeply respects the intellectual faculty of people and therefore has the potential to portray oppression and change the story. This form of theatre focuses not just on acting, but also action. It deliberates on the reflection of reality and a rehearsal for future action.
Objectives
The 5 day workshop is an introduction to this amorphous framework and possible ways to implement TOTO in various fields:
This workshop will focus on participatory process which offers people the possibility of identifying issues, articulating them in the form of short plays and creating a structure in which an active dialogue between the actors and the spectators is instigated in order to try and change the story.
The work that we will do during these 5 days will be experiential with a summary and debrief of the techniques involved:
▪ Space to connect within –understanding the connectedness between our body and the mind, and that between human beings and everything in the world around them. This will be done to create agility and ability and have healthy fun using physical and voice exercises every morning.
▪ Analyse the intersectionality of oppressions and confront – the hierarchies, violence and injustices within ourselves, and our collective lives through personal sharing and listening sessions.
▪ Script forum and facilitation – principles of Jokering and utilising these in different fields (eg. facilitating large heterogeneous groups)
▪ Develop trust in the power of the oppressed and finding means and tools to harness the same
▪ Build an effective culture of dialogue for sustainable change.
| ▪ | Space to connect within –understanding the connectedness between our body and the mind, and that between human beings and everything in the world around them. This will be done to create agility and ability and have healthy fun using physical and voice exercises every morning. |
| ▪ | Analyse the intersectionality of oppressions and confront – the hierarchies, violence and injustices within ourselves, and our collective lives through personal sharing and listening sessions. |
| ▪ | Script forum and facilitation – principles of Jokering and utilising these in different fields (eg. facilitating large heterogeneous groups) |
| ▪ | Develop trust in the power of the oppressed and finding means and tools to harness the same |
| ▪ | Build an effective culture of dialogue for sustainable change. |
Who is this workshop for?
This workshop is for change-makers, social work practitioners, activists, people associated with people’s movements, theatre artists who work on aspects of social change and young artists exploring to develop techniques for social change.
This workshop is ideal for those who want to begin using theatre for social change processes.
About the facilitators
Jaya Iyer
Jaya Iyer has been associated with various aspects of social development for over three decades. An awardee of many prestigious fellowships, Jaya is also a recipient of the UNESCO Aschberg Bursary to study the Theatre of the Oppressed with Augusto Boal. As a theatre professional she has developed and staged over 20 major productions and around 1000 Studio,
Street and Community Performances. Her productions have won the prestigious Sahitya Kala Parishad “Best Play of the Year”, has been showcased in Edinburgh Fringe Festival, Urdu theatre festival, Sriramsummer festival, theatre for Truth festival etc. She has travelled extensively with her performances and as a trainer across India and the world.
Jaya was CEO of Pravah and led the process to set up the National Centre for Children and Youth in Nehru Memorial Museum and Library. She has been a guest faculty in Bachelor of Elementary Education, TIE, National Museum Institute and Disom School of Leadership. Jaya has designed and led various public campaigns around Seeds-sovereignty, Child Rights, Gender-based violence, Anti-plastic movements and Proactive Peacebuilding.
Zubair Idrisi
Zubair has been a theatre practitioner for more than fifteen years. His area of interest lies in working around the transformative power of theatre in influencing social change. Zubair specialises in theatre based training and facilitation of workshops at individual, community and organizational level. He has extensive experience in project design and coordination with a focus on youth and gender-oriented programs, in different regions of the country. He has designed and executed various social campaigns as well, each addressing a specific cause or an issue. His work with Pradan between 2017 and 2019 involved campaigns around gender based violence, PDS distribution and the right to vote.
Zubair has worked with multiple non-government, government and private organisations, along with students and teachers belonging to educational institutions as well. These include UNICEF, Greenpeace, JAGORI, Sangat, PCI, and Teen Murti Bhawan, Nehru Learning Centre for Children and Youth and Government of India headquarters in New Delhi.
Dates and Venue: 7th to 11th November, 2021, Sambhaavnaa Institute, VPO – Kandbari, Tehsil – Palampur, District – Kangra, PIN 176061, Himachal Pradesh
Click here for more information and to fill the application form.
