Exploring heterosexism through participatory theater: An experiment

Abstract

Using Augusto Boal's Theater of the Oppressed (1985) playmaking structures, students in an undergraduate education course, Educating for Social Justice, developed forum plays—brief improvisational scenes designed to provoke discussions of power imbalances. The plays focused on “gay rights,” a topic the participants self-selected through guided discussions about injustice. The plays were performed for an English class of tenth-grade high school students. As a mode of investigating the efficacy of this instructional strategy to spur self-reflexivity, data about the college students' experiences were collected during each class session and in subsequent semi-structured group interviews. This article describes the project and the participants' reactions to the invitation to step into the role of ensemble member and play-maker, as well as the development of their critical consciousness about the effects of cultural bias.