Playback Theatre to be Used Around the World to Enact True Stories of Human Rights

(PRWEB) October 25, 2006 -- On December 10, 2006, over 70 Playback Theatre companies on 6 continents will celebrate Human Rights Day with coordinated Playback Theatre productions on the theme "Listening, Speaking Out, and Taking Action". Playback Theatre is improvisation based on the personal stories of audience members. This event will mark the second annual coordinated global Playback Theatre performances on a shared theme.

"The title 'Listening, Speaking Out, and Taking Action' invites stories of human rights activism, to create hope and healing," says Raphael Peter, a moving force behind the event, and founder of Asheville Playback Theatre in North Carolina, USA. "Hearing these stories and seeing them enacted will remind audiences of the ways in which a focus on the common rights of all human beings has the power to transform our lives, our communities and our world."

The international network of Playback companies has been growing for over 30 years and now circles the world. Most performers participate on a volunteer basis. Playback has been used to help Palestinians and Israelis understand each other; to educate villagers in Botswana about AIDS; to encourage "untouchables" in India to overcome the stigma of their caste; to connect young Germans with the legacy of their grandparents from World War II. Around the world, playback is in schools to show children the effects of bullying, and in prisons to provide a forum for inmates to share their hopes and fears. Public performances often include a mix of humorous stories with those of challenge and transformation.

A typical performance begins with a warm-up in which audience members are asked to share personal feelings about various subjects, and a group of actors does brief "fluid sculptures" to dramatize what they hear, accompanied by live music. Then the conductor of the evening asks for someone to offer a longer story. An audience member comes up to the stage and is interviewed. The only rule is that the story told must be the personal experience of the story-teller. The actors and musicians listen very carefully, the conductor gives them assignments, and then theatre is created spontaneously from what has been heard. At its best, the "playback" reaches into the story behind the story, serving the storyteller by adding insight and art to what has been shared.

Jonathan Fox, who founded Playback Theatre in 1975, is very enthusiastic about the potential of the event. "Playback Theatre is based on the idea that everybody's story has value. We come to the stage with nothing prepared – we have no script. We have only our ability to bring people's real lives to the stage in the moment, our listening skills, and our humanity. December 10th is a day to look forward to. It will be a day of hope for a troubled world."

Global Playback is a project of EarthStage Productions, Inc. "We are thrilled to present this amazing event to people in so many countries," said Mountaine Mort Jonas, Producing Director of EarthStage. "Having been involved in many scripted productions designed to raise consciousness about social and environmental issues, we are fascinated and amazed by the power of Playback Theatre to touch the hearts of audience members, creating spontaneous theatre out of their own stories."

###