Skip to main content

Macy Rupp-What A Riot!

“What a Riot!”, a project initiated by CAP and eventually spearheaded by Mady Schutzman, is a prime example of effective use of one Augusto Boal’s many forms of theatrical community engagement: the Joker System.  To summarize, the Joker System takes on a historical character or event as a point of discussion, where participants can share and debate opinions or feelings about this particular subject.  The Joker System also includes a chorus (or two) “that sings, dances, complains, rallies, and talks directly to the audience” (Schutzman, 4).  Something I appreciated about the Joker System approach was the ability for this community of youth to identify a common feeling that was represented in a real life experience: in this case that of Rodney King and Claudette Colvin.  While Schutzman clarifies that most of the teens she was working with were part of the latino community, she explores how the students found similarity and representation in the stories of Rodney King and Claudette Colvin. Also including the tragedy of Rodney King allowed the students to engage in a historical event that their parents and grandparents remember, giving them an even bigger identifier with the situation.  With the Joker System, the students were able to workshop as multiple characters, analyzing-even just for a minute-how each of the characters felt in the situation, revealing how the students felt about the police, about social pressure, and about fear.  I would love to ask Mady how she was able to lead these conversations confidently.  That was something I found incredibly striking about our experience in class with her, she was confident in her teaching and space in the room but maintained a respectful and open disposition considering she didn’t know many of the students personally.  I would also like to know how she sees different theatre creators and collaborators engaging in more community-constructed pieces like this- essentially where can designers find a space in these rooms? 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Research- Andrew Moore

My first year at calarts, I was unfortunately raveled in a title 9 investigation revolving sexual misconduct. While I was not a involved directly, I was a bystander and very good friend to the person who started the investigation. I was asked by the affected person to be interviewed for evidence. My experience in the interview room with the investigator was anything but reassuring. I was asked to give my side of the story, but I was pushed by questions asked by the investigator that were geared towards finding the attacker innocent. I used to have trust in the government ability to handle situations like this justly, but I was disappointed to see that the disgusting stories that I've heard about victim blaming and non-fiction. The fact that it was unraveling itself before my eyes was very surprising. Unfortunately the person stayed in the dorms on campus through all of this and at the end of the year there was an even more dramatic event involving the same person and another gir...
Post a Comment
Read more

Prison system effect on communities of color/ Connection to slavery

Although the United States has made some progress, it remains a substantially racially segregated nation residentially. And, the country stays very economically segregated as well. It is not surprising that poor people of color have been incarcerated disproportionately during the massive increase in imprisonment that has occurred in the nation since the early 1980s. It is from poor communities of color that a very large number of felons are removed, and to these same neighborhoods that they return when their sentences end. This population churning has been called “coercive mobility” by criminologists. Although it is the intent of legislatures, judges, police, and prosecutors to protect citizens and communities, there is reason to believe that coercive mobility has the unintended consequence of actually increasing crime and victimization. There is overrepresentation of minority group members among those engaging in crime, but even after this is taken into account, people of color a...
Post a Comment
Read more

What a Riot!

What strategies did she employ in her process of making in play with the youth? Some of the strategies Mady Schutzman employed in her process of making a play with the youth were, utilizing the Joker System, presenting exercises to create a “safe” space by opening the floor and space to the youth to speak, reflect, and share their stories. What approaches resonated with you? Many of the approaches that were used were very intriguing and interesting, but there was one approach that resonated with me. Particularly, the questions that came out of one of the approaches. In the vein of the Joker System, it was designed to ,”promote social inquiry and personal agency by asking questions (How do I know what I know? Who authored the historical narratives we reiterate? Are those stories relevant to me and my community? Who do they privilege and who do they marginalize?” Mandy shared. These questions resonated with me because they are questions I have been asking myself this...
Post a Comment
Read more