Theatre of the Oppressed and Critical Pedagogy are widely considered to have transformative potential. This theoretical paper has a dual aim to explore the two theories as a framework for developing a Grade 6 mathematics decolonial Forum Theatre script with facilitators from the Sisonke National Art Education Centre. It is guided by the question, "How can arts innovatively contribute to a meaningful learning of mathematics in schools?" It argues that integrating theories has the potential to foster a meaningful pedagogical discourse, ultimately enriching the educational potential of Forum Theatre's transformative and decolonial process.
The discourse on Applied Theatre (theatre for development) in Nigeria is mainly a postcolonial development, and it has been subjected to various academic debates, just like every other special area located within the curriculum of Drama, Theatre, Performing Arts and Creative Arts departments in Nigeria. Unarguably, one of its primary or core assignments is to motivate and assist communities through collective and active participation in a particular location to identify and, in addition, work out solutions to issues or matters pertinent to collective growth and survival in their day-to-day activities. This study, therefore, adopts historical and sociological explorations of the development of Theatre for Development (TfD), popularly referred to in recent times as Applied Theatre in Nigeria, one-on-one interviews and analysis of relevant literature materials.
This article introduces a drama-based model I developed to engage school-going pupils in research and critical thinking. Implemented in four secondary schools in southern Malawi, the model examined whether arts-based techniques could effectively disseminate research findings on harmful cultural practices and children's disabilities among adolescents while empowering adolescents as social advocates. Using workshop and performance vignettes, I demonstrate how pupils creatively repackaged information and participated in dissemination. The article reflects on the model's impact, noting shifts in learners' knowledge and advocacy skills, while acknowledging the limitations of short-term interventions. Overall, the model shows promise for empowering young people in Malawi.
This article reflects on play theory and conviviality as approaches to facilitation with regard to my facilitation experience and that of the participants during the devising, staging and post-performance discussions of a play titled Speak Out! which was devised and staged between 2018 and 2019. The research was done in the context of exploring devised theatre, in the form of Popular Participatory Theatre (PPT) as a way of encouraging the victims and survivors of the Gukurahundi atrocities that took place in Zimbabwe from 1983-1987 and their community members to speak out on this issue to create what I term a langalezo experience. The research notes that play, in the form of games and exercises conducted during the research, together with cultivating a convivial space, enhanced facilitation, though there were limitations.
This paper re-examines Theatre-for-Development (TfD) education in Ghana, analysing factors that shape its curricula, pedagogy and outcomes. It reflects on four (4) public universities in Ghana and the results show that TfD education operates at the nexus of culture, community, and national development, with curricula that are participatory, contextually grounded, and socially transformative. It cultivates practitioners and students who are critically aware, creatively engaged, and equipped to address pressing societal challenges. The findings emphasise experiential learning, community engagement, and measurable impact. Sustained outcome-based evaluation is recommended to ensure TfD education remains adaptive, relevant, and a catalyst for meaningful social transformation.
The #FeesMustFall movement of 2016 demanded that South African universities urgently rethink their curricula (Langa, M. 2017. #Hashtag: An Analysis of the #FeesMustFall Movement at South African Universities. Johannesburg: Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation). While calls to decolonise education are now familiar (Freire, P. 1970. Pedagogy of the Oppressed. London: Penguin; Mignolo, W., and M. Tostanova. 2012. Learning to Unlearn: Decolonial Reflections from Eurasia and the Americas. Ohio: Ohio State University Press), there remains uncertainty about what a decolonised curriculum in South Africa entails and how it should be taught. This article argues, through a case study, that Southern African Applied Theatre in the form of Popular Participatory Theatre (PPT) offers an effective decolonial pedagogy. At the University of KwaZulu-Natal, final-year Drama students create a participatory performance, 'Learn, Unlearn, Relearn', becoming co-investigators who engage education and re-curriculation in a post-apartheid context.
Placing Spaces is an ongoing practice-research project I have been developing with my daughter Poppy since 2023. Together, we have been testing a process of intergenerational collaboration and using walking methods and creative technologies to explore place from a child's perspective. This article outlines the process we have been on thus far and critically reflects on a geo-located AR walk from 2023. Bringing together a series of critical lenses - across walking, performance, new media, and childhood studies - I argue that walking-with a 6-year-old and a smartphone enabled us to embrace a series of entanglements between adult, child, technology, and place..
This paper compares two participatory works, A Mile in My Shoes and Way From Home, to explore how walking and migration intersect in performance. Drawing on theories of mediated empathy, sonic citizenship and the politics of listening, it analyses how each work stages encounters with migration: one through solitary, immersive listening; the other through dialogic, collaboratively navigated journeys. The paper examines how these differing dramaturgies engage with representation, questioning the ethics of empathy and distance. It argues that walking can disrupt power imbalances in migratory performance, offering new modes of feeling and forms of response to displacement.
