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Political Theatre

Content here focuses on theatremakers, companies, and projects engaging with politics and political action. A great example of the power of this work is the video series Political Theatre as a Civil Right from the British-Romanian political theatre company BÉZNĂ Theatre.

The Latest

Viewpoints for Achieving Authentic Representation of Roma Communities on Stage
Essay
Viewpoints for Achieving Authentic Representation of Roma Communities on Stage
by Tímea Éva Bogya, Márton Illés
27 March 2024
Should We Write Differently About Roma Theatre?
Essay
Should We Write Differently About Roma Theatre?
by Noémi Herczog, Éva Moharos
25 March 2024
How LUNG Is Breathing Radical Joy into Theatre in the United Kingdom
Essay
How LUNG Is Breathing Radical Joy into Theatre in the United Kingdom
by verity healey, Matt Woodhead, Helen Monks
5 March 2024
Subpoetics International
Essay

Subpoetics International

A Boat Constructed While on Water

22 February 2017

Seth Baumrin, artistic director of Subpoetics International, discusses the history, process, and journey of a company working with the stories of refugees and displaced peoples to find their way.

It Happened Here
Essay

It Happened Here

Looking Back on the Revivals of Sinclair Lewis’s Play During the Election of 2016

19 February 2017

Paul Gagliardi, a scholar of the Federal Theatre Project, considers recent productions of It Can’t Happen Here and why the play is resonating with both directors and audiences today.

Radical Empathy is the Theatre Artist’s New Job
Essay

Radical Empathy is the Theatre Artist’s New Job

8 February 2017

Tiffany Antone makes a case for why we have to reconsider how/why we engage audiences, and why it is now every artist’s job to be out on the frontlines, cultivating radical empathy and civil discourse.

Theatre after Obama (or with Trump)
Essay

Theatre after Obama (or with Trump)

5 February 2017

Harvey Young, chair of Northwestern University’s theatre department, looks at how American theatre has responded to a rise in conservativism to forecast not only what may appear on the horizon but also to anticipate a renewed attention to political/activist theatre following the 2016 election.

Staging a Conflict
Essay

Staging a Conflict

Israel, Palestine, and the American Theatre

5 February 2017

Jamil Khoury writes about curating a series of six staged readings about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and that power of theatre to speak to controversial issues.

When Family Inspires Political Protest Art
Essay

When Family Inspires Political Protest Art

4 February 2017

Bryn Boice writes about how a rift with her father led her to begin work on a devised piece called I, Snowflake.

Absurd is “the new Normal” in 2017
Essay

Absurd is “the new Normal” in 2017

Interview with Tina Brock, artistic director of IRC, Philadelphia’s only surreal theatre

3 February 2017

Henrik Eger interviews Tina Brock about how her company is responding to the current political climate in the US, and what she feels that absurdist theatre has to offer.

China on Stage
Essay

China on Stage

3 February 2017

Jonathan Mandell digs into three recent productions in New York City—Made in ChinaConfucius, and Caught—that explore US-China relations.

Philoctetes in Jerusalem
Essay

Philoctetes in Jerusalem

The Cost of Growing Up a Soldier

31 January 2017

Abraham Benson-Goldberg discusses Khan Theatre’s production of Philoctetes, examining the intersections of young soldiers, heroism, war, and politics.

Absurdist Theatre and Resistance
Essay

Absurdist Theatre and Resistance

27 January 2017

Edward Einhorn discusses the relevance of absurdist theatre.

Calling All Bad Hombres and Nasty Women for a Nation-wide Day of Performance Protest
Essay

Calling All Bad Hombres and Nasty Women for a Nation-wide Day of Performance Protest

20 January 2017

Sara Warner interviews performance artists Holly Hughes and Lois Weaver and social media coordinator Mary Jo Watts about their initiative Not My Presidents’ Day.

Staged Resistance
Essay

Staged Resistance

19 January 2017

On the eve of the inauguration of Donald J. Trump, Jonathan Mandell looks at how the political resistance of theatre artists is playing out on and off stage in New York.

The 28th Annual Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday Celebration
Video

The 28th Annual Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday Celebration

Monday 16 January 2017
Ashland, OR, United States

Celebrate with our community! Ashland, Oregon’s 28th annual Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday Celebration features music, spoken word, and dance livestreamed on the global, commons-based HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv Monday 16 January at 12 p.m. PST–1:30 p.m. PST (Los Angeles) / 2 p.m. CST–3:30 p.m. CST (Chicago) / 3 p.m. EST–4:30 p.m. EST (New York).

What Comes Next?
Essay

What Comes Next?

Theatre and Posttraumatic Growth After the 2016 Election

4 January 2017

Emily White writes about how her research on posttraumatic growth informs her belief that theatre can be an important tool to help America unite and heal.

American Theatre and Palestine
Essay

American Theatre and Palestine

21 December 2016

Gary English, artistic associate at The Freedom Theatre on the West Bank in the Jenin refugee camp, discusses the complications of presenting work on the Palestinian/Israeli conflict in the US.

How to Cure a Plague
Essay

How to Cure a Plague

21 December 2016

Matthew Minnicino discusses what canonical works of theatre we can turn to in light of the current political situation in the US.

Artistic Identity in the Age of Fascism (or
Essay

Artistic Identity in the Age of Fascism (or

You don’t bring nuance to an iron fistfight)

3 December 2016

Playwright Abbey Fenbert on the new mandate for theatre artists.

The Trump Effect
Essay

The Trump Effect

1 December 2016

Jonathan Mandell asks how perceptions of theatre have changed since November 8 and if and how theatre itself will change as a result of the new regime.

Radical Theatre in Poland
Essay

Radical Theatre in Poland

27 November 2016

Brian Hashimoto travels to Poland and reports on the 2016 Malta Festival.

Party Planning
Essay

Party Planning

The Jubilee Answers Questions, Gives Advice, and Asks for Help

14 November 2016

One year into organizing, the Committee of the Jubilee reports out on progress, answers common questions, and re-extends an invitation to the American Theatre to join the year-long nationwide festival of 2020.

Every 28 Hours at Faultline Theater in San Francisco
Video

Every 28 Hours at Faultline Theater in San Francisco

Thursday 10 November 2016
San Francisco, CA, United States

FaultLine Theater in collaboration with American Conservatory TheaterCampo SantoCrowded Fire Theater, and Lorraine Hansberry Theatre presented Every 28 Hours, livestreamed on HowlRound TV network on howlround.tv on Thursday 10 November at 7:30 PDT (San Francisco) 9:30 p.m. CDT (Chicago) / 10:30 p.m. EDT (New York) / 26:30 GMT / 3:30 a.m. BST (London).

The Legacy of Judith Malina and Julian Beck with The Living Theatre
Video

The Legacy of Judith Malina and Julian Beck with The Living Theatre

Monday 7 November 2016
New York City, NY, United States

Martin E. Segal Theatre Center in New York City presented the panel discussion The Legacy of Judith Malina and Julian Beck with The Living Theatr​e livestreamed on the global, commons-based peer-produced HowlRound TV at howlround.tv Monday 7 November at 6:30 p.m. EST (New York) / 3:30 p.m. PST (Los Angeles) / 5:30 p.m. CST (Chicago) / 10:30 p.m. GMT/UTC (London) / 23:30 CET (Berlin). Share your thoughts in Twitter with#howlround, and follow @HowlRoundTV for update

A Performance of Ballot Eats the Bullet
Video

A Performance of Ballot Eats the Bullet

Friday 4 November 2016
Austin, TX, United States

The VORTEX in Austin, Texas presented Ballot Eats the Bullet—6 black women set out to honor the beauty and complexities, heal the trauma, and highlight the joy of what it means to be a black woman in America today, livestreamed on the global, commons-based peer-produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv Friday 4 November at 9 p.m. EDT (New York) / 8 p.m. CDT (Chicago) / 6 p.m. PDT (Los Angeles). Share your thoughts on Twitter and Instagram with #howlround

Seeking Dialogue and Change
Essay

Seeking Dialogue and Change

Objectively/Reasonable Explores the Shooting of Tamir Rice

4 November 2016

Yuko Kurahashi on Playwrights Local’s documentary show about the Tamir Rice shooting at the Creative Space at Waterloo Arts in Cleveland, Ohio.

Theatre History Podcast # 10
Podcast

Theatre History Podcast # 10

Sizwe Banzi Is Dead and the Legacy of Anti-Apartheid Theatre

24 October 2016

Michael Lueger talks with Dr. Gibson Cima of Georgetown University about Sizwe Banzi Is Dead, it’s collaborators, and it’s lasting impact on South African political theatre.