Art and Conscientization ─ Forum Theatre in Uganda, Rwanda, DR Congo, and South Sudan

How can the performing arts add value to peacebuilding programs? Is it possible to use participatory theatre to reconnect and reconcile enemies? What is the trauma-healing effect for those acting in a theatre troupe?

Claus Schrowange has explored these questions and the opportunities of using forum theatre in peace work in Uganda, South Sudan, Rwanda, and DR Congo. His conclusion is that forum theatre is more than mere entertainment. It is an aesthetic tool for social change.

But the value of theatre is not generated automatically, the way it is done matters. If it is done in a participatory manner with an authentic, be?lie?vable acting style, involving both the audience and stage actor in a vivid and touching experience, the impact is immediately felt.

This book presents the approach Schrowange developed together with a team of African theatre practitioners in a variety of circumstances and environments. It is illustrated with case studies taken from the author's direct experience of using the approach he describes in Eastern DR Congo and Rwanda.

Claus Schrowange is a peace worker with a passion for theatre. During his professional career he became fascinated by the Movement Theatre approach of Gabor Csetneki, Improvisation Theatre of Keith Johnstone, and Augusto Boal's Theatre of the Oppressed. He combined the three approaches into a unique acting style that provokes critical thinking and enhances dialogue on peace-related sensitive issues. From 2010 to 2015, he established various forum theatre troupes in Uganda, South Sudan, Rwanda, and DR Congo, exploring the possibilities and limitations of theatre for peace work. He has worked in rural low-literacy communities as well as with the urban intellectual elite. Claus Schrowange currently lives in Kigali, Rwanda.