PRE -1994

1. Workshop Theatre 2. Protest Theatre 3. Workers Theatre 4. Community Theatre 5. Educational Theatre 6. Satirical Revue

1.Anyone can create or act in a play even if they could not read or write. 2.No script is needed. 3.It is reasonable to stage as costumes, props, lighting and scenery are kept to a minimum. 4.No special venue is required. Generally an arena acting space is used. 5.The audience can surround the actors informally – they do not even need chairs. 6.Special effects are created by the actors themselves using musical, vocal and movement skills. 7.Costs are kept very low. 8.There is not one director 9.Everyone participating in the play plays a part in the creation process. 10.The play can be about something that happened recently. 11.The play structure is as varied as the talents of the group.

1.It is episodic. 2. It makes use of a repeated formula. 3. It is often multi-lingual. 4. Scenes are often linked by song, dance or physical movements. 5. The actors make extensive use of physicality and vocal work (reminiscent of Grotowski) to create a dynamic, energetic performance. 6. Dramatic skills include storytelling, dialogue, monologues, songs, dance, music and narration. 7. The audience is often encouraged to participate in singing, dancing and contributing ideas when called for.

Aims Education, Mobilisation and Conscientisation Purpose * Make workers aware of their situation and the issues that confront them. * Create worker solidarity. * Educate workers in ways to take action in order to change their situation. * Raise money for strikers. * Empower all workers (literate or not) equally to understand issues * Resolve the issues presented.

* Finds a common expression, not reliant on language, ideal for illiterate people. * Uses techniques of mime, story telling, casual language and humour. * Gets across a serious and potentially contentious message. * Shifts between realist and non-realist performance styles. * Multi-lingual, multi-cultural audiences * Relies on a few performers * Portable and flexible in terms of staging, costumes and props. * Celebrates life as it is, focuses on relationships between people in a specific community. * Shows that differences between people does not necessarily mean that one party is weaker than the other

Examples of plays: - Ilanga Lizo Phumela Abasebenzi (the sun also rises) - The Dunlop Play - The Kwa-Mashu Street Cleaners’ play - The Clover Play _ The Long March

* Social involvement and interaction are important * In third world countries, where many of the population are illiterate, drama and theatre often replace books as a means of educating and informing the community on issues that concern them. * Examples of community theatre - Winterveld Squatters Camp project -Kode Kobenini ma Crossroads? (How long Crossroads?)

The three stages in community theatre 1. Conscientisation : role playing is used to establish the needs and problems of the community and create awareness of them. 2. Social action : Experts (nutritionists, psychologists etc) help the actors to dramatise scenes showing how to solve, or cope with the problems. 3. Politicisation : These scenes educate communities about the underlying causes of their situation and are intended to lead to social change.

*This type of theatre is usually initiated by an outside group who wish to teach people in general about specific concerns *It need not be political in nature and covers a wide range of topics from teaching people to read and write, to making people aware of the dangers threatening rhino Examples: The Twisisa (understand) project at Gazankulu. To teach people to read and write and develop basic skills needed to cope with life in an industrialised society. Beachwise. It was commissioned in the 1990’s by the Durban City Council to educate people who had never been to the beach before. Previously beaches were segregated and many Black people had never visited the beach before. These performances educated the audience about safety, hygiene and generally how to behave responsibly at the beach. Voter education was essential in the run up to South Africa’s first democratic election in 1994.

* Uses the same basic process and principles of Educational Theatre – it is a particular form of Educational Theatre * Focus on conservation and environmental issues to educate people about the preservation of the environment and wildlife. * Productions are generally workshopped and involve movement and verbal dynamics,using very few props or make up. Examples: Kwamanzi Horn of Sorrow Elephant of Africa

Satire uses ridicule, irony and sarcasm to expose and discourage vice and folly.  Ridicule : Mocking, making fun of a person or thing.  Irony : Saying the opposite of what you mean to make fun of something.  Sarcasm :A bitter or wounding remark. Superficially satire seems to be purely amusing but it has a deeper purpose. It mocks politics, individual silliness, hypocrisy, artificiality, relationships, sex, religion and bad manners amongst other human follies. Audiences laugh at what they see on stage as it mirrors their own foolishness and the idiocy of those around them.