Applied Theatre: A Pedagogy of Utopia

Selina Busby is Principal Lecturer in Applied & Community Performance at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, University of London, UK. She is a theatre practitioner who makes performances with a wide range of community groups across the globe.

• Foreword, Helen NicholsonAcknowledgementsPermissionsIntroduction1. Costa Rica: Utilizing a Global Vision to Safeguard the Local Village2. Partnerships, Integrated Community Investment and Nebulous Utopia3. Aspirational Thinking: Social Justice and Critical Pedagogy4. Articulation and Amplification5. Finding a Thirdspace6. Geographies of ResistanceConclusionNotesReferencesIndex

I have recommended Selina Busby’s Applied Theatre: A Pedagogy of Utopia to both colleagues and students and have found inspiration in its pages myself. In her words, the book focuses on 'the positive contribution that making theatre can have when thinking about and acting for social justice, in opening up possibilities or "the field of the possible," in enhancing aspirational thinking and resisting what is, in order to create what is not yet, but which can be imagined' (pp. 204-205). The power of hope is the most potent force when facing inequity and injustice; theatre can give voice and agency and creative expression to those who may lack these in their lives. Busby’s global survey of her practice is required reading for anyone who wants to be inspired, or re-inspired, with the reality that theatre can and does make tangible differences in peoples’ lives.