Augusto Boal

Augusto Boal presenting a workshop on the Theatre of the Oppressed in New York City. Riverside Church, May 13th 2008.

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Augusto Boal (March 16, 1931 - May 2, 2009) was a Brazilian theatre director, writer and politician. He was the founder of Theatre of the Oppressed, a theatrical form originally used in radical popular education movements. Boal served one term as a vereador (the Brazilian equivalent of a city counselor) in Rio de Janeiro from 1993 to 1997, where he developed legislative theatre^[1].

Biography

Early life

Boal was born in Rio de Janeiro as the son of José Augusto Boal (a Portuguese Baker), and Albertina Pinto (a housewife). As an undergraduate, Boal got a degree in Chemical Engineering at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, UFRJ (then known as Urca). He took an interest in theatre at an early age, preparing skits for family members along with his three brothers, but he did not become involved in the theatre scene until after completing his masters degree. After graduating from the UFRJ, Boal went to New York, where he studied at the School of Dramatic Arts at Columbia University while also pursuing his masters degree in Chemical Engineering. Among Boal's Theater professors was John Gassner, who had also taught Tenesse Williams and Arthur Miller.^[2] In 1956, shortly after graduating, Boal was asked to work with the Arena Theatre in São Paulo, southeast Brazil.^[3]Boal was in charge of directing plays along with other dramaturgs such as Jose Renato, who was also the founder of the Arena Theatre. It was here that he began to experiment with new forms of theatre never before seen in Brazil, such as the Stanislavski Method for actors, with which he became familiar during his time at Columbia and when involved with the Actors Studio in New York. Boal adapted these methods to social conditions in Brazil, taking a leftist approach on issues concerning nationalism, which were very much in vogue at that time period since the country had just undergone a long period of military dictatorship.^[4]

Work at the Arena Theater of São Paulo

While working at the Arena Theater in São Paulo, Boal directed a number classic theater pieces that he transformed, making them more pertinent to Brazilian society and economy. Among these plays was John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men, known in Brazil as Ratos e Homens. This was Boal's first performance as a director at the Arena Theater of São Paulo. Critics acclaimed this piece and Boal won the Prêmio de Revelação de Direção (Direction Revelation Award) from the Association of Art Critics of São Paulo, in 1956. In the early sixties, the ratings at the Arena Theater of São Paulo started to drop, almost causing the theater to go bankrupt. Consequently, the company decided to start investing in national theater (pieces written by Brazilian dramaturgs) as a move that could possibly save it from bankrupcy. The new investment proved to be a success, opening up the path for a national theater scene. Boal then suggested the creation of a Seminar in Dramaturgy at the Arena Theater, which was quickly implemented and soon became a national platform for many young playwrights. Many succesful productions were born from this Seminar and now form part of the Arena Theater of São Paulo's nationalist phase repertoire. One of these productions was '[['Chapetuba Futebol Clube]], written by Oduvaldo Vianna Filho in 1959 and directed by Augusto Boal. ^[5]

Exile

A new military regime started in Brazil in 1964 with a coup d'état supported by the Brazilian elite, the church and the middle class, as well as by the United States (in fear of communism). ^[6] Boal’s teachings were controversial, and as a cultural activist he was seen as a threat by the Brazilian military regime. In 1971 Boal was kidnapped off the street, arrested, tortured, and eventually exiled to Argentina^[7], where he stayed for 5 years. During those 5 years Boal published two books: Torquemada (1971) and his much acclaimed Theater of the Oppressed (1973). Torquemada is a book that talks about the systematic use of torture in prison^[8]. Boal takes the name of the leading figure of the Spanish Inquisition, Tomas de Torquemada as an example of historical forms of systematic torture. In Theater of the Oppressed Boal develops a theatrical method based on Pedagogy of the Oppressed, a book by the Brazilian educator and writer Paulo Freire(who was also a good friend of Boal).^[9] Boal's method (which has been implemented in various communities around the world) seeks to transform audiences into active praticipants in theater plays. Boal argues that traditional theater is oppressive since spectators usually do not get a chance to express themselves, and that a collaboration between both parties, in contrast allows spectators to perform actions that are socially liberating. The method, as Boal liked to explain, seeks to transform spectators into "spect-actors." ^[10]After living in Argentina, Boal traveled to other countries in South America such as Peru and Ecuador, where he worked with people in small and usually poor communities that dealt with conflicts such as civil wars and lack of government attention. Boal was of the opinion that only the oppressed are able to free the oppressed. In Peru Boal practiced his Theater-Forum method, in which spectator replaces actor to determine the solution to a given problem presented by the actor, which can also be a real problem someone in the community is facing. Boal also lived in Paris, France for a number of years, where he created several Centers for the Theater of the Oppressed, directed plays, and also taught classes at the Sorbonne University. Boal created the first International Festival for the Theatre of Oppressed in 1981.^[11]

While Boal was in exile, his very close friend and Brazilian musician Chico Buarque wrote him a letter that would later result in the Chorinho hit called Meu Caro Amigo or My Dear Friend (1976). In this song, Buarque tells his friend about the situation in Brazil at the time, addressing the military dictatorship in a very subtle but clever way (due to censorship issues, many artists couldn't express themselves freely).^[12] The melody of the song is very happy and upbeat while the lyrics explain:

My dear friend, please forgive me, if I can’t pay you a visit, but since I found someone to carry a message, I’m sending you news on this tape. Here we play soccer, there’s lots of samba, lots of choro and rock’n'roll. Some days it rains, some days it’s sunny but I want to tell you that things here are pretty dark. Here, we’re wheeling and dealing for survival, and we’re only surviving because we’re stubborn. And everyone’s drinking because without cachaça, nobody survives this squeeze. ^[13]

Back in Brazil

After the fall of the military dictatorship Boal returned to Brazil after more than 20 years of exile in 1986. He established a major Center for the Theater of the Oppressed in Rio de Janeiro (CTO Rio), whose objective was to study, discuss and express issues concerning citizenship, culture and various forms of oppression using theatrical language. Boal's work in the CTO made way for the approval of a new law that protects crime victims and witnesses in Brazil. ^[14]Boal's group has worked next to numerous organizations that fight for human rights. In 1992 Boal ran for city councilor in Rio de Janeiro as a theatrical act, and he was elected. Boal's support staff was his theater group, with whom he quickly developed various legislative proposals. His objective was to work out issues citizens might be facing in their communities through theater, and also to discuss the laws of the city of Rio with people on the streets. After having worked to transform spectator into author in Theater of the Oppressed, Boal initiates the Legislative Theater movement process, in which voter becomes legislator. Boal is known to say that he did not create laws arbitrarily while he was city councilor. Instead, he asked people what they wanted. Other politicians were not very fond of this. Out of 40 of Boal's proposed laws, only 13 got approved during his term as councilor of Rio de Janeiro. His term ended in 1996, but he continued performing legislative theater acts with different groups in Brasilia, where 4 more laws got approved even after Boal had left. Boal also worked with prisoners in Rio and São Paulo. Boal argued that people in prison are not free in space, but that they are in time, and that the Theater of the Oppressed strives to create different types of freedom so that people are able to imagine and think about the past, the present, and invent the future instead of having to wait for it. All this was in order for prisoners to have "a healthier and more creative lifestyle." People in the Movimento sem Terra or Landless Workers Movement of Brazil also experienced working with Boal's theater methods. Boal's son Julián worked along with his father and now continues to take the Theater of the Oppressed to various communities in Brazil and around the world. In 2008 Augusto Boal was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize, and in March of 2009 he received the title of "World Theater Ambassador" from the UNESCO. ^[15]

Influences

Augusto Boal presenting his workshop on the Theatre of the Oppressed. Riverside Church, May 13th 2008.

Most of Augusto Boal’s techniques were created after he realized the limitations of didactic politically motivated theatre in the poor areas where he worked. He found that his attempts to inspire the people living in poor or 'slum' areas to rise up against racial and class inequality were inhibited by his own racial and class background, since he was white and comparatively financially comfortable. His new techniques allowed the idea of rebellion and the impetus for change to come from within the target group. Much of his early work and teaching was inspired by Marxist philosophy, although through his career he had not been restricted by this and much of his work now falls within the boundaries of a centre left ideology.

Paulo Freire was a major influence on Boal’s teachings. He and Freire became close in later years. When Freire died, Boal said "I am very sad. I have lost my last father. Now all I have are brothers and sisters".^[1]

Boal is also known to quote the famous play Hamlet by Shakespeare, in which the playwright explains (through Hamlet the character) that theater is like a mirror that reflects our virtues and defects equally. Although Boal find this quote beautiful, he likes to think of theater as a mirror in which one can reach in to change reality, to transform it. ^[16]

Death

Augusto Boal died May 2, 2009 at age 78 in Rio de Janeiro. He died of respiratory failure after a long battle against leukemia. ^[17]Critic Yan Michalski claims Augusto Boal is the most known and respected Brazilian "theater man" abroad.^[18]

Published works

Theatre of the Oppressed (London: Pluto Press, 1979)

Arguably Augusto Boal's most academically influential work,^[19][20][21] in which the reader follows Boal’s detailed analysis of the Poetics of Aristotle and the early history of Western theatre. Boal contends that the Aristotelian ethic is a means of oppressing the masses, the people, the workers and the spectators in favour of stability and the continued dominance of a privileged few. He argues that the Tragi-drama, a formulaic drama style which today could be considered similar to that of soap operas, helps the State promote its continued existence. He sees the Brazilian government as an example of an oppressive state using theatre to propagate its oppressive system. He then outlines his early theories and practices for attempting to reverse the paradigm. It also talks about Newspaper Theatre attempted to talk about local problems and present it to the audiences. Forum Theatre was used to teach the illiterate how to read and write. It is currently used in over 70 countries. Invisible Theatre is used to discuss political activity. Image Theatre is used to establish communication with other countries. Theater of the Oppressed has been translated to more than 25 languages over the years. ^[22]

Games For Actors and Non-Actors (London: Routledge, 1992; Second Edition 2002)

This is probably Augusto Boal's most practically influential book, in which he sets down a brief explanation of his theories, mostly through stories and examples of his work in Europe, and then explains every drama exercise that he has found useful in his practice. In contrast to Theatre of the Oppressed, it contains little academic theory and many practical examples for drama practitioners to use even if not practicing theatre that is related to Boal's academic or political ideas. Boal refers to many of these as "gamesercises", as they combine the training and "introversion" of exercises with the fun and "extroversion" of games. It has been influential in the development of Community Theatre and Theatre in Education (T.I.E.) practices worldwide, especially in Europe and South America. These games include Carnival in Rio and Your Friend is Dead.

The Rainbow of Desire: The Boal Method of Theatre and Therapy. (London: Routledge, 1995)

This book re-evaluates the practices commonly associated with the Theatre of the Oppressed for a new purpose. It has been argued that Boal contradicts himself with this take on his work,^{[citation needed]} as it mostly concerns itself with creating harmony within society, whereas his early work was concerned with rebellion and upheaval. However, Boal's works can be seen as a progression and exploration of a Left Wing world view rather than a unified theory. In the context of those under-represented in a society, his methodology can be used as a weapon against oppressors. In the context of those in a society who are in need of catharsis for the sake of their own integration into it, it can be switched round to empower that individual to break down internal oppressions that separate that individual from society. The theories have been useful in the pioneering field of drama therapy and have been applied by drama practitioners.

Other books

• Legislative Theatre: Using Performance to Make Politics. London: Routledge, 1998.
• Hamlet and the Baker's Son: My Life in Theatre and Politics. London: Routledge, 2001.
• The Aesthetics of the Oppressed. London: Routledge, 2006.

Recognition

Augusto Boal receives the Crossborder Award for Peace and Democracy. Abbey Theatre, April 3rd 2008.

In 1994, Boal won the UNESCO Pablo Picasso Medal,^[23] and in August 1997 he was awarded the 'Career Achievement Award' by the Association of Theatre in Higher Education at their national conference in Chicago, Illinois. Boal is also seen as the inspiration behind 21st Century forms of performance-activism, such as the "Optative Theatrical Laboratories".

Boal received The Cross Border Award for Peace and Democracy by Dundalk Institute of Technology in 2008.^[24][25] He was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2008 ^[26][27].

References

External links

• International Theatre Institute - Author of the World Theatre Day Message 2009 Augusto Boal
• International Theatre of the Oppressed Organisation.
• Augusto Boal Interview on Democracy Now! in 2005
• Augusto Boal, Founder of the Theater of the Oppressed, Dies at 78 Interview on Democracy Now! in 2007
• Guardian Obituary, May 6, 2009
• New York Times Obituary, May 9, 2009
• A Tribute to a Brazilian Writer Who Made Theater into a Weapon for the Oppressed June 28 2009
• Giolli, an italian cooperative that works with his method Agost 11 2009