Cardboard Citizens is UK’s leading Theatre of the Oppressed organisation founded by theatre director Adrian Jackson who is still the head of the organisation. Adrian was a student of Augusto Boal himself and the first interpreter of Boals books from Portuguese to English. Cardboard Citizens has been making life-changing theatre with and for homeless people for 28 years. They create high-quality plays that make a real and positive difference to the society and those living in its margins. Their plays are performed on the stage, in the street, in hostels, centres and prisons. Cardboard Citizens has grown out to be a creative hub for excluded people where they can attend workshops, get training and support and though that grow confidence, community and skills.
At ICAF Adrian Jackson will conduct a workshop in which he shares his expertise. The workshop will be a mix of practice and theory, looking at how to create Forum Theatre which goes beyond the simplistic and seeks to present the complexities of the real world, while still inviting enjoyable participation. Participants will explore how they might develop their own pieces, and also reference will be made, in video and text formats, to previous pieces made by Cardboard Citizens. There will be time for some games and exercises and questions and answers about the methodology of Cardboard Citizens, which has worked with homeless people using theatre for almost thirty years. Adrian’s story, his view on art/theatre in society, and his energy are exciting and inspiring for practitioners interested in Theatre of the Oppressed methodology, but certainly also for every other rebellious and creative spirit that wants to make a positive change in the world by creating art with and for people living in the margins of society.