Theatre and War: Notes from the Field

Chapter One: Why? 

Why does a researcher-practitioner intervene with theatre in a time and place of war? There are two dimensions to this question: why make theatre at all in a time and place of war? Why make a particular theatre based intervention in a time and place of war? While the first dimension is important to consider i.e., why make theatre at all in a context of violence, my approach to this consideration might be best summed up by Badal Sircar (2003; in Mitra, 2004:68) who says, when questioned about why he makes theatre while faced with the "infinitesimal” social change that his interventions might catalyse, " […] what else should we do? We are people of the theatre. That is the only thing I know how to do". In agreement with Sircar, the theatre being the only thing I know how to do, this chapter on intentionality does not seek to make a case for, or justify why, theatre practice needs to occur in conflict/post-conflict zones. Rather, it is the second dimension to the question that I seek to address: why a particular researcher-practitioner might make a certain theatrical intervention in a specific time and place of war. In addressing this dimension, there are three components that this chapter proposes as being important to clarify vis-à-vis intention: the primary action that the researcher-practitioner will undertake, the specific point on the theatre making/performance timeline the intervention will focus on, and the kind of response that is sought from the chosen action and point(s) of focus.

Chapter Two: Where?

Turning up at a location and offering help can often be more of a hindrance than a help. Know the situation, know the role you can play and know that sometimes others can do a better job because of location, language, culture and so on. Also remember it is 'easy' in so many ways to be drawn to a war zone, or a country hit by disaster-- the need for help is clear and obvious... however, in doing so we often forget the troubles at our own doorstep, the problems of the country in which we live and where we have the easy location, the language and cultural awareness. We do not need to look across borders and oceans to find a desperate need for this kind of work and sadly as so many do so they fail to hear the desperate plea for help closer to home (Abdunnur and Hartley 2007; in Balfour, Hughes and Thompson, 2009:144)

Chapter Three: Who?

So how does one manage a performance in a country at war? First, you have to have a balance of actors. I decided to not choose real Hutu and Tutsi and Twa but to take actors with the physical appearance of Hutu, the physical appearance of Tutsi. I learned very early on that the first thing the audience do is count how many Hutus, how many Tutsi and how many Twa, and they say, 'OK, it is balanced' based on the appearance. Second, you have to balance the crimes committed by both ethnic groups. For example, you have two columns. The Hutus' crimes are typically using 'machetes', cutting off limbs, pounding babies and so on, while the Tutsi's crimes are typically making spears from bamboo, killing intellectuals, killing fathers of families... Then, when people tell the testimony of a Hutu crime then, just after, we hear a Tutsi crime, and it is like that sys-tem-at-ic-al-ly [emphasis in original] (Frederique Lecomte; in Balfour, Hughes and Thompson, 2009:181).

Chapter Four: What?

The fragile balance is kept between the pleasure of discovery, the unexpected, and the unusual, on one hand, and the pleasure of recognition, déjà vu, and the anticipated on the other. To upset this balance in either direction means threatening the success of the complex communicative interaction which constitutes the very life of theatrical performance (Marinis and Dwyer, 1987:112).

Chapter Five: When?

We might also note that there are times when theatre and performance cannot, or perhaps should not, happen. During and after the devastation and threat of war, what might be needed is a pause; stillness and silence while waiting for the dust to settle and some semblance of everyday routine to return. One of the first 'ethical dilemmas' that is raised by these practices, therefore, is when is it desirable and when is it not desirable to make performance in a place of conflict? (Balfour, Hughes and Thompson, 2009:303).