Theatre for Social & Ecological Change

#performance

Discover how the tools of theatre and activism in art can be used to enact change. Together, we will investigate theories of change making through art and begin working on your own activist performance for the physical & digital realm.

All change begins with a utopian thought. In this multidisciplinary performance workshop we will bring together tools from artivism and theatre to explore ideas of how we can disrupt capitalist, patriarchal & racist structures, especially in light of fascist ideologies gaining new momentum all over the world. How can we use our creative forces to drive change, subvert, and engage audiences outside of traditional theatre conventions? And with the arts facing ever increasing budget cuts, how do we find new stages to tell our stories and build networks of support to sustain and empower one another? In times of crises, allowing ourselves to play, dream and experiment seems like a radical thought. We will reconnect with creativity and humour through bridging theory and practice, analyzing case studies of successful political movements that started in theatre whilst immediately applying our findings to creative exercises. Through playful exchange we will explore hands-on tools to start your own artivism performance, yielding either a number of performance pieces or one ensemble performance. The workshop will culminate in a mini-festival where participants can share their work-in-progress pieces. We will explore public spaces to use as our stage, bringing change & transformation into the public and digital realm. The course is co-delivered by artists Karoline Gable & Isabell Schnalle, who bring together their theatre and artivism practice modeling this multi-disciplinary approach. The workshop also features a guest lecture and interactive Q&A with Keil Troisi from the internationally recognised and long established activist artist group The Yes Men.

Schedule

Day 1

• Introduction to Theatre for Change. Explore historic examples of activist theatre and the genesis of theatre & change against the backdrop of an ever changing society
• Artivism: What does that mean? Screening of the short film REALITYWEAR, connecting art & theatre as vehicles for socio-ecological change.
• Creative response exercise and first discussions about possible areas of interest

Day 2
- Getting into it: Practical games and exercises around performance theatre and Improv to explore ways of engaging audiences and gaining confidence performing

• Critical response process: How do we feed back on each others work while it’s still in development?

• Pitching ideas: What do you want to make?. Rapid response: Create a mini performance from a prompt
• A short impulse lecture on the digital realm as the largest stage of our reality: exploring how we can leverage this space to enact meaningful socio-ecological transformation and embrace our agency as digital citizens.
   

Day 3

• The Yes Men: Dress for success and learn to corrupt. Guest lecture by Keil Troisi, an interactive Q&A for next steps of your project
• Refine your project idea & Location scouting

Day 4

• Lab: working on your idea / feedback rounds
• Masterclass mentoring
• Finalising locations

Day 5

• Mini festival: Perform your piece of activist theatre.
• group evaluation and reflection
• next steps

There will be a visit to a cultural institution / trip to a performance at some point during the week. Details tbc.

Prior application requirements

We recommend that in preparation for the workshop you research one piece of performance activism, artivism or political piece of theatre that interests you / has impressed you. We also invite you to think about which field of social activism you are drawn to. This can be related to your identity, your field of work, or simply an area you are passionate about.

Knowledge requirements

None required other than a desire to engage with ideas of change in an artistic context. This course is suitable for Artists from all disciplines as well as Economists, people working in fashion/textile, performers, musicians, and people working in politics, journalism and activism. This workshop is an exchange between theory and praxis and is based on knowledge and skills exchange.

Equipment requirements

Notepads and pens are useful, but any device you can write on will be fine such as Ipads or laptops. Phones with cameras / ability to record are useful but not mandatory.

Isabell Schnalle - Transformation Designer & Artivist | Mediator & Lecture in Arts and Design at UdK since 2021 such as Klasse Klima | Co-Founder of Threads & Tits Agency |

Trained as a tailor, Fashion Designer and Transformation Designer, Isabell researches and works on the activist and transformative potential of art, design and education.
Since 2022 she has been working as part of the Duo Threads & Tits. They act as agents for socio-ecological change and use artistic interventions to inspire with vision and courage. With humor and sharp analysis, they draw attention to social and ecological injustices, which they bring into various spaces in the form of desirable "reality corrections". They are currently in the process of founding an Agency for socio-ecological change as part of the Berlin Start Up Scholarship at UdK.

Isabell uses fashion and textiles as a political communication medium with which she challenges neoliberal continuities. Acting as consultant and mediator, she brings art, change, and design strategies to universities, institutions and companies.

https://www.instagram.com/threadsandtits/

 

Karoline Gable - Director, Writer & Actor / Activist | Lecturer at UdK since 2023 | Karoline trained as an actor, singer and dancer both at UdK Berlin as well as the Royal Academy of Music, London. As an actor she has worked at the National Theatre London, in the West End, Raimundtheatre Vienna, as well as the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. In her teaching practice, Karoline specializes in creating new works for societal change and artist development, using reflective practice to empower artists in embracing their roles as agents for change. As part of the senior staff at the London Academy of Music and dramatic Art in London, she created a new artist foundation course reflecting this intersectional and interdisciplinary approach. She works as a freelance lecturer across the UK and Germany and has taught at Arts Ed London, Mountview London, Ernst Busch Academy of Performing Arts Berlin, Leeds University and currently teaches at UdK Berlin. As a director she focusses on new writing and queer, female-led works and has directed for The Other Palace Theatre London, The Brighton Fringe Festival, and Neuköllner Oper Berlin. She is currently writing a new show about Institutions and Revolution which is supported by Arts Council England.

https://www.instagram.com/karoline_gable/