Using the Performing Arts for Social Change

Want to learn how to use the performing arts to change the world? Today, theatre is increasingly defined as a commercial enterprise. This course will examine the use of theatre for social change, examining its practice, theory, role, and production. Discussions will include how theatre is used for creating personal and social change and the key elements of successful projects. Classes will look at the full range of a social change initiative, from process to performance to organization to impact. Interactive class sessions will include participation in a creative process involving community building, team building, conflict resolution, social analysis, and scene creation. Each student will be expected to develop a coherent theory of change and construct a viable performing arts-based project “blueprint.” Students will also visit a rehearsal of The Possibility Project in Manhattan. (Mr. Griffin is the founder and president of The Possibility Project, a nonprofit organization using the performing arts to empower teenagers to transform their lives and communities.) This class meets once a week.