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Story of My Life |
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Making a drama out of a crisis may give the homeless back some of their self-esteem
By MARYANN BIRD
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| DEE CONWAY |
FORUM THEATER: A stage for debate
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For the homeless, life on the streets can be pretty dramatic. But across Europe, drama is increasingly being used as a way to help homeless people make their way back to confidence and self-esteem, and even a small income. Projects in which the homeless serve as both actors and audience are reaching vulnerable people where they live, both physically and emotionally.
"Acting is one of the most powerful resocialization therapies," says Miroslav Drabek, a theater director who founded the Jezek & Cizek troupe in Prague two years ago. "It forces people to reassess their lives. It helps them realize their self-worth." Treading the boards has certainly helped Bozena Kopova, 37, who's been homeless for three years and lives in a tent along a rail line in Prague. She played several parts in a recent production called From Karlin to Bratislava by Steamship Lanna 8 in 365 Days and, she says, identified with the play because its main characters were, like her, drifters. "We are all on Steamship Lanna 8," she says. Acting has also helped to ground her. "I don't drink as much," she says, "and I am no longer afraid of communicating with people."
For Adrian Jackson, founder and artistic director of Cardboard Citizens — Britain's only professional troupe working consistently with the homeless and formerly homeless — theater is not just about getting people off the streets. A key element of the 12-year-old company's repertoire is addressing issues via "forum theater," a mix of improvisation and debate pioneered by the Brazilian writer-director Augusto Boal.
After a play is presented once, it starts again. Spectators stop the action and assume the central character's role when they think he or she could make wiser choices. In their recent tour of hostels and day centers, the troupe presented Jackson's The Man With Size 12 Feet. Loosely based on the case of "shoe bomber" Richard Reid, it deals with alienation and powerlessness. "The idea is that the homeless themselves have something to say about the experience, and have some answers," says Jackson. Michelle Cobb, 20, found an answer through her three-year involvement with Cardboard Citizens. Her goal: "to get into a drama school and to broaden my horizons."
With reporting by Jan Stojaspal/Prague
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