Applied Theatre: A Pedagogy of Utopia

— —

Selina Busby (The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, University of London, UK)

Applied Theatre

A Pedagogy of Utopia

Selina Busby (The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, University of London, UK)

$180

Hardback

Not in-store but you can order this
How long will it take?

Availability Information

We source books from suppliers in Australia and overseas. For books we don't currently have in stock, the time it takes to get them from our suppliers can vary widely - from a few days to a few months - so we check each book with each supplier to determine the expected time it will take to be supplied to us.

We then advise you accordingly. If the time taken to get any book is too long for you, you can let us know and we will cancel or adjust your order, and refund as required.

To find out the anticipated arrival time for specific items prior to ordering, please contact us by phone or email:

Phone +61 2 9264 3111, or 1800 4 BOOKS (1800 4 26657) if outside Sydney:
option 1 Abbey's Bookshop (Crime, History, Science, Kids & more) • info@abbeys.com.au
option 2 Language Book Centre (ESL & Foreign Languages) • language@abbeys.com.au
option 3 Galaxy Bookshop (Sci-fi, Fantasy, Romance, Graphic Novels) • sf@galaxybooks.com.au

QTY:

English

Methuen Drama
22 April 2021

Theatre Studies; Community & outreach services; Society & culture: general

Shortlisted for the 2022 TaPRA David Bradby Monograph Prize

Applied Theatre is a widely accepted term to describe a set of practices that encompass community, social and participatory theatre making. It is an area of performance practice that is flourishing across global contexts and communities. However, this proliferation is not unproblematic. A Pedagogy of Utopia offers a critical consideration of long-term applied and participatory theatre projects. In doing so, it provides a timely analysis of some of the concepts that inform applied theatre and outlines a new way of thinking about making theatre with differing groups of participants.

The book problematizes some key concepts including safe spaces, voice, ethical practice and resistance. Selina Busby analyses applied theatre projects in India, the USA and the UK, in youth theatres, homeless shelters, prisons and with those living in informal housing settlements to consider her key question: What might a pedagogy of utopia look like? Drawing on 20-years of practice in a range of contexts, this book focuses on long-term interventions that raise troubling questions about applied theatre, cultural colonialism and power, while arguing that community or participatory theatre conversely has the potential to generate a resilient sense of optimism, or what Busby terms, a ‘nebulous utopia’.

By: Selina Busby (The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama University of London UK)
Imprint: Methuen Drama
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions: Height: 216mm, Width: 138mm,
Weight: 458g
ISBN: 9781350086111
ISBN 10: 1350086118
Pages: 272
Publication Date: 22 April 2021
Audience: College/higher education , Primary
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Active

Foreword, Helen Nicholson Acknowledgements Permissions Introduction 1. Costa Rica: Utilizing a Global Vision to Safeguard the Local Village 2. Partnerships, Integrated Community Investment and Nebulous Utopia 3. Aspirational Thinking: Social Justice and Critical Pedagogy 4. Articulation and Amplification 5. Finding a Thirdspace 6. Geographies of Resistance Conclusion Notes References Index

Selina Busby is a Principal Lecturer in Applied & Community Performance at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, University of London, UK. She is a theatre practitioner who makes performances with a wide range of community groups across the globe.

Reviews for Applied Theatre: A Pedagogy of Utopia

I have recommended Selina Busby's Applied Theatre: A Pedagogy of Utopia to both colleagues and students and have found inspiration in its pages myself. In her words, the book focuses on 'the positive contribution that making theatre can have when thinking about and acting for social justice, in opening up possibilities or the field of the possible, in enhancing aspirational thinking and resisting what is, in order to create what is not yet, but which can be imagined' (pp. 204-205). The power of hope is the most potent force when facing inequity and injustice; theatre can give voice and agency and creative expression to those who may lack these in their lives. Busby's global survey of her practice is required reading for anyone who wants to be inspired, or re-inspired, with the reality that theatre can and does make tangible differences in peoples' lives. * Monica Prendergast University of Victoria, Canada * [R]eaders are engrossed in the author's eloquent theoretical argument blended with her engaging storytelling of each different applied theatre project. Not only inspiring but also a critically necessary read for applied theatre students in our current time of trouble. * Wan-Jung Wang, Professor of Applied Theatre, National University of Tainan, Taiwan *