Applied Theatre and Racial Justice

Applied Theatre and Racial Justice: Care, Community, Change documents and amplifies lessons from practitioners and scholars who use performance to create models of transformation, collective learning, and liberation.The essays and lively roundtable discussions center knowledge and cultural practices developed by Black, Indigenous, Asian, Latine, people of color, and/or people of the global majority, many of whom were doing this work long before applied theatre became an established field of academic study. Building upon frameworks such as Augusto Boal’s Theatre of the Oppressed, protest theatre, antiracist theatre practices, and theatre for social change, the contributors grapple with applied theatre and racial justice from various perspectives as they work towards mitigating and healing the harm caused by racial injustice. These unique essays provide sample exercises, applicable principles, pedagogical tools, philosophical approaches, and models for art-making and research. The range of writing styles includes personal narratives, ethnographies, theatre histories, and case studies on topics such as Indigenous education, Hip-Hop activism, anti-racist theatre, women’s health, artistic training, ritual practices, Black feminism, state and systemic violence, mental health, dance, and community organizing.Applied Theatre and Racial Justice: Care, Community, Change, part of the Applied Theatre in Context series, is essential reading for students, educators, and theatre practitioners in community, academic, and professional settings who wish to apply performance strategies to imagine and create more supportive ways of being in the world. This interdisciplinary book engages with a broad range of related fields, including education, civic engagement, criminal justice, sociology, ecology, and gender, ethnicity, and race studies.

Lisa Biggs is an Associate Professor in the Department of Africana Studies/Rites and Reason Theatre at Brown University, USA, where she teaches theatre and performance studies. She is the recipient of the 2023 Lila A. Heston Award from the National Communications Association and the Errol Hill Award from the American Society for Theatre Research.Eunice S. Ferreira is an Associate Professor in the Theater Department at Skidmore College, USA, where she teaches Black theatre, theatre history, mixed race performance, translation, and theatre for social justice and change. She is a director, dramaturg, actor, and a leading scholar on theatre of Cabo Verde, West Africa.