Applied Theatre: Ethics

Applied Theatre: Ethics explores the ethical implications of applied theatre practice, particularly when working with vulnerable groups. It provides an overview of critical debates and case studies from around the world, offering recommendations for community-based ethical approaches.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 296 pages
Publication date: 24 August 2023
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC

Applied Theatre: Ethics delves into the significance of conducting applied theatre practice ethically, exploring its impact on the work done with communities and participants. It examines how practitioners can balance aesthetics and ethics when crafting performances, particularly with relatively inexperienced and often vulnerable groups of people who are being asked to both tell and stage their stories. The two sections bring together theoretical and practical approaches for theatre-makers to examine the ethics of their applied theatre projects.

Part One offers an overview of critical debates and the editors' reflections on their own practice. It introduces readers to ethics in applied theatre, informed by the thinking of philosophers, scholarly literature, and the editors' own experiences, including Indigenous perspectives on ethics and theatre. For applied theatre practitioners, it provides recommendations for community-based ethical approaches working with principles of voice, agency, care, service, collaboration, presence, relationality, and reciprocity.

Part Two presents a range of international case studies that explore how the theories and issues are worked out in various diverse practices. It considers ethics from varying critical perspectives and contexts, including projects in Greece, Nigeria, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, the United States, the United Kingdom, the Philippines, and Canada. Covering work with participants of many ages, the case studies include the work of a professional dance theatre company working with people in substance abuse recovery in the UK, interactive drama used in an educational context in Nigeria, and the complexities around an applied theatre project on race in the US.

In conclusion, Applied Theatre: Ethics provides a comprehensive and insightful exploration of the ethical considerations in applied theatre practice. It offers valuable insights and recommendations for theatre-makers and practitioners seeking to navigate the complex terrain of ethical decision-making in their work with communities and participants. By examining critical debates, case studies, and theoretical frameworks, the book contributes to the ongoing dialogue about the role of ethics in the field of applied theatre and its potential to create positive social change.

Weight: 368g
Dimension: 138 x 215 x 19 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781350288706