Theatre and War

Abstract

Theatre and War my idealistic tendencies, it was Development Economics that became my area of focus. Discovering a passion for the theatre didn't only astound my family; it also took me by surprise. It was during my second theatre class in College-courses I had initially taken to fulfil the requirements of my liberal arts, United States education-that I had this epiphany. I remember sitting in class that day, in a circle. The professor asked each of us to talk about why we had chosen her class and why we were interested in studying theatre. As my classmates answered the professor's question, I racked my brain for an answer that would seem appropriate. By the time it was my turn to speak, I remember being overwhelmed. I think I might have actually had tears in my eyes. I think I said something inane like "…because there's nothing else I'd rather be doing"… I left the class that day, utterly perturbed. What had happened in there? What were those tears about? Rational answers are still difficult for me to provide when asked questions about why I make/research/write about theatre. But anyone who has encountered that passion-be it for a discipline, a person, or a cause-will know what I'm talking about. Discovering a passion for the theatre was my epiphany. Discovering, later, that it was not only a passion for the theatre but for studying the use of theatre in places of war, that was another epiphany; one that arose during a three month study abroad program in northern Uganda. This epiphany, the one about using theatre in times and places of war, is the one that has stuck with me for over a decade now. An epiphany that has catalysed innumerable dilemmas and insights. Dilemmas and insights that form the core of this book. Why do I make theatre in places of war? Where will I intervene? Who am I creating work with/for? What are the aesthetic strategies that I will use? When might it be time to leave? retrospect always comes with the risk of embellishment and of misremembering. I try to be as honest as I can in writing about my past work, but since memories can be faulty, fragmented, and interpretive, my Notes from the field present my 'truths' as I remember them. And it is for this reason that I maintain the anonymity of the individuals and organizations that I speak about in this book, lest my interpretive recollections of the past place my collaborators at risk in the contexts of conflict in which they continue to live and work. 6 Theatre and War consumed much of the region since 1986. In Lira, I witnessed the use of theatre in Internally Displaced People's (IDP) camps, in rehabilitation centres for ex-child soldiers, and in bars. In Lira, I witnessed the passion and courage that it takes to make theatre in an active conflict zone: where one's actions as a theatre practitioner are predicated not only on a consideration of possible repercussions, but also on having to be incredibly entrepreneurial in order to make a living as a theatre artist in a war economy. In Lira, I witnessed the politics of Non-Governmental Organi...

No Bull Here, Please: Ethical Demands and Expectations of Audiences

“…And prison theater is just one of the multiple thorny and high-stakes purposes for applied theater. From a broader perspective, Nandita Dinesh's (2016) startling and unsettling book Theatre and War: Notes From the Field is also full of insight for theater-makers in war zones, to help them make accommodation for their problematic contexts and conflicting purposes.…”

“…There are copious examples of this in Michael Balfour’s (2004) Theatre in prison , and James Thompson’s (1998) Prison Theatre —and a particularly sensitive analysis by Thompson (2003) in his self-revealing “Making a Break for It.” And prison theater is just one of the multiple thorny and high-stakes purposes for applied theater. From a broader perspective, Nandita Dinesh’s (2016) startling and unsettling book Theatre and War: Notes From the Field is also full of insight for theater-makers in war zones, to help them make accommodation for their problematic contexts and conflicting purposes.…”

The Second Coalition

“…Enter the decision to pursue a doctoral project and to frame that undertaking as a theatrical exploration of the grey zones in Kashmir's conflicts. 2 The grey zones -the 2 For a detailed account of the specific trajectory of my explorations, and their positioning within the larger arena of Theatre & Performance studies, please see Theatre & War (Dinesh, 2013), available Open Access, http://www.doi.org/10.11647/OBP.0099 areas of murkiness where traditional understandings of victimhood and perpetration need to be questioned -in relation to soldiers, militants, and civilians in Kashmir.…”