Thursday, September 24, 2009
In Belarus, Theater as Activism
NYTimes.com: "Welcome to the world of the Volny Teatr, or the Belarus Free Theater, the only unregistered — and therefore independent — dramatic collective in this nation of 10 million on Europe’s edge, which President Aleksandr Lukashenko has ruled since 1994."
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4 comments:
I read this article and was struck by how much we take for granted in the US. Something so obviously part of our day to day lives as theater is so limited in various parts of the world. What a great way to spread information, we're so lucky to have this art form that can reach so many people. Reading a story like this makes me value the impact theater can have, and shows all the possibilities we have when we are given the right to perform whatever we want. Then I read an article about "Bring It On" the new musical, and just the idea that anyone would ever put in so much work to put on a show like that seems absurd and laughable.
I take great issue with the author's questioning if the art would be considered worthy in a context outside of what it is. The group made clear even within this interview that their theatre is not "political", but "relevant". Of course to an outside American audience with our social and political freedoms, the performances may not be on par with August: Osage County. They are performing, illegally, theatre that is directly and daily influenced by the world immediately around them and performing it for an audience that is also experiencing these things first hand. Any group that braves prosecution every time they perform has my support.
i agree with syvianne in that its hard to imagine that there would be something so taboo in theatre in other areas of thew orld because in the u.s. especially in areas like n.y, theatre is really an outlet for provocative and innovative work whether the content is related to important political and social issues. i like how khalezin emphasizes that they are not in fact a political theatre but a 'relevant' one because they really dont deserve to be considered an underground and taboo theatre when all theyre doing is spreading awareness
The comment about how this theater is not political, but relevant really struck me. Particularly with the opening example about the woman stripping to call attention to the prostitution issues in Belarus, it definitely seems relevant. But at the same time, it cannot be relevant without being political. Because they are defying the law and defying politicians, it is political- because there are so many international supporters of the theater group, it becomes a political nightmare for Belarus. Eventually they are going to have to confront this issue, and I hope that the government opens up to allow this relevant theater in their country.
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