ATHE’s 22nd Conference: Difficult Dialogues: and the Art of Engagement

Keynote Address by Augusto Boal Thursday, July 31 6:00 pm – 7:00 pm (immediately following the awards ceremony) Imperial Ballroom – 2nd Floor

ATHE opens its 22nd conference with a Keynote presentation by Augusto Boal, one of the most influential contemporary forces in the world of theatre. With our conference theme centered on the idea of “Difficult Dialogues,” Boal was the logical choice to deliver this important address to the ATHE community. Having spent the vast majority of his career discovering, developing and executing theatrical forms designed to confront personal, social and political oppression, the active pursuit of “difficult dialogues” has been at the very heart of his work.

Boal’s “Theatre of the Oppressed” techniques are practiced in over 70 countries, and his books, such as Games for Actors and Non-Actors, can be counted among some of the most influential theatre-related texts in the world. Director, writer, politician and innovator, Augusto Boal embodies the essence of “difficult dialogues” in what may be one of his last appearances in North America.

Brazilian Dr. Augusto Boal was raised in . He was formally trained in chemical engi- neering and attended Columbia University in the late 1940’s and early 1950’s. Although his inter- est and participation in theatre began at an early age, it was just after he finished his degree at Columbia that he was asked to return to to work with the Arena Theatre in São Paulo. His work at the Arena Theatre led to his experimentation with new forms of theatre that would have an extraordinary impact on traditional practice.

Augusto Boal is a Brazilian theatre director, social activist, and author of Theatre of the Oppressed, Games for Actors and Non-Actors, Rainbow of Desire, Legislative Theatre and and the Baker’s Son. His work includes several different types of dramatic forms including image theatre, forum theatre, invisible theatre, legislative theatre, and cop-in-the-head. Developed as a response to and embodiment of Paolo Freire’s Pedagogy of the Oppressed, Theater of the Oppressed allows homogeneous groups of people to problem solve through interactive theatre techniques. Following the Wednesday paid workshop, a free performance, available to all attendees, will take place from 7 pm – 8 pm in the Grand Ballroom.

Boal will sign copies of his book in the Exhibit Hall in the Grand Ballroom at 7:15 pm, immediately following his keynote address.

July 31- August 3, 2008 Grand Hyatt Denver 12 Denver, CO