A proposed model for theatre-for-development in South Africa: a critical study

English: The research for this dissertation was undertaken against the backdrop of prevailing conditions in South Africa. References were made to the socio-political and economic context of post-apartheid South Africa. The study set out to establish reasons why theatre-for-development is not used in the South African context and to formulate an integrated model for its use that is derived from successful international examples and methodologies. The background to development was provided by referring to different development paradigms: the modernisation paradigm, Marxism and neo-Marxism, and nee-populism, the basic needs approach, eco-development and human scale development as alternative methods for development. A definition of the concept 'development' was provided and the principles and concerns of development were pointed out. A conceptual framework of 'culture' was provided with specific reference to the relationships between culture, ritual and tradition. The aims and uses of theatre were pointed out and reasons were provided for its use in educational and development contexts. The history of theatre-for-development was provided and the use of theatre for education and development was elaborated on by referring to the work of Augusto BoaI. His concept of 'theatre of the oppressed' is of importance, and includes forum, invisible, image, culture, newspaper and legislative theatre. Examples were provided of the use of theatre in educational and development contexts in countries of the developing world. Specific characteristics of these theatre initiatives were identified that directly contributed to the formulation of the proposed model. Theatre-for-development was seen as a multidimensional phenomenon. The context in which creation takes place was considered in terms of the current socio-political context in South Africa, referring to basic needs; current problems in training and education; and attempts at reconstruction and development. The informal economic and the unofficial cultural contexts were considered. The historical legacies of the past and their impact on cultural development were pointed out. The collective and improvisational manner in which theatre-far-development is created and the functioning of its processes in practice were explained. The aims and functions of theatre-far-development were identified as functionality; analysis and criticism; mobilisation and conscientisation; inclusivity; educational; empowerment; and the creation of a sense of community. The characteristics of performances that are created as part of theatre-for-development processes were provided. Reference was made to theatre-for-development's multilingualism, the stereotypical characterisation that is often employed in performances, the collective and plurimedial style that is applied, as well as the use of oral and indigenous performance forms. The localised, unconventional and informal context within which theatre-fordevelopment takes place, was explained as one of its strengths. Audience involvement was typified as an aspect of theatre-far-development, and active involvement was contrasted to passive appreciation, and affective reaction to cognitive reaction. The effects of criticism and censorship were considered with specific reference to conventional canonised criticism and contextual criticism. In this regard, the recipient of the message was focused on by juxtaposing process against outcome orientation, and performance against literary orientation. The immediacy with which recipients evaluate the performance and the democratic collective as part of the process of appraisal were also touched upon. The dimensions of theatrefor- development were also considered in the light of the necessity to formulate effective criteria to measure the outcomes of theatre-for-development. The dissertation provided a practical model for the use of theatre-far-development by focusing on the places where development occurs, and the contribution of district-based fieldworkers as facilitators for development projects and practitioners of theatre-far-development. A methodology for the application of theatre-far-development techniques was proposed and potential problems in the implementation of such a model were identified. Concluding remarks included a summary of the research findings, conclusions drawn from the information contained in the dissertation, as well as the identification of areas for future research.