On the Performance Philosophy of Psychosocial Theatre in Nigeria
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Date
2021
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Department of the Performing Arts Faculty of Arts, University of Ilorin.
Abstract
Psychosocial Theatre deals with the burden of man's conscious and unconscious endless actions, inactions and crises created at the individual, family, group, community and societal levels. Most of these actions, inactions and crises are biologically, culturally and economically induced and resolved within the creative inventiveness of the web of Psychosocial Theatre. Unlike psycho-drama that has enjoyed relative scholarship and practice in the global theatre market, Psychosocial Theatre, the researcher's counter-discursive creation is identified, constructed and theorised within the expanse of the omnibus re-creative and regenerative functions of the theatre. The intersections of Erikson's (1950) Psychosocial Theory and Armaghanyan's (2018) Psychosocial Approach are adopted as the theoretical thrusts of the study, complemented with the content analysis method. Indeed, variants of Psychosocial Theatre and their illustrative examples from Nigeria and elsewhere such as domestic theatre, workplace theatre, theatre of historical reliving, social media's "new normal" theatre, common room theatre, convocation/freedom/graduation theatre, transport theatre, club house theatre, news stand/free reader's theatre, pedlar/marketing theatre, sport/stadium theatre, stage-by-stage stop gap theatre, viewing centre theatre and religious theatre are discussed. Interestingly, most of the forms and variants of Psychosocial Theatre identified are not literarised, the study, however, contends that they indeed, fall under theatre of performance whose philosophy celebrates the African cycle of life, cultural revival, historical re-living, social cohabitation, wellness and good living. The study concludes that, the performance philosophy of Psychosocial Theatre is the uncelebrated and under-researched encyclopaedia of arts that should be celebrated while a few ones among its forms and variants should be rebranded in man's attempt to re-invent his being and essence.
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Keywords
: Psychosocial Theatre, Psychosocial Approach, Performance Philosophy, Theatre Practice
Citation
Adeoye, A. A. (2021). On the Performance Philosophy of Psychosocial Theatre in Nigeria. The 1st Monograph in the Faculty of Arts' Monograph Series. Ilorin: Department of the Performing Arts Faculty of Arts, University of Ilorin.