Forum Theatre is an opportunity for creative, community-based dialogue. The theatre is created and performed by community members who are living the issues under investigation. Over the course of a Headlines' THEATRE FOR LIVING workshop, participants engage in very specific games and exercises that help them investigate issues at a deep level. Then, they create a short plays, in this case, perhaps 5 minutes in duration. Each play is performed once, all the way through, so the audience can see the situation and the problems presented. The story builds to a crisis and stops there, offering no solutions. Each play is then run again, with audience members able to "freeze" the action at any point where they see a character engaged in a struggle. An audience member yells "stop!", comes into the playing area, replaces the character s/he sees struggling with the problem, and tries out his/her idea. We call this an ÔinterventionÕ. The process is fun, profound, entertaining and full of surprises and learning.
"On Feb. 21, 2003 I saw a powerful and very familiar portrayal of bullying and the effects it has on people involved. Don't Say a Word was an excellent tool that used youth involvement to create a powerful and very impacting message about real and important issues, while ensuring the participation and recognition of culturally and socially diverse voices that individual youth represent."
Monica Lee, Asian Society for the Intervention of AIDS (ASIA), April 3, 2003
"I was impressed with the way Don't Say a Word created a space for people to grapple with issues of violence in very real and meaningful ways. It was fabulous to see the engagement of the audience, particularly the youth, in creating new possibilities. I was struck by the multitude of openings for change highlighted in the production, and it prompted me to consider the opportunities I have in my life to make 'insightful interventions'. I left the production feeling very hopeful and inspired."
Desiree Sattler, audience member, Feb. 28, 2003
Headlines has a long and strong history of developing process-oriented theatre with communities. The project forms the basis of transformational dialogue. In 2002 we had the opportunity, through our production on school violence, DonÕt Say a Word, to have a quantitative survey done by Dr. Shelley Hymel. The survey found measurable, positive result in the school regarding changes in attitude towards school violence and bullying. We have known this was true for years through anecdotal evidence, but it is great to have the hard, statistical data.
"Students who participated in the Anti-Bullying Forum Theatre events were significantly more likely to feel that they "know what they can do to stop harassment" than students who did not participate. Students who participated reported more willingness to respond and be responsible than did students who did not participate. Given that these data were collected only a short time after the Headlines Theatre presentation, these effects are actually most encouraging. In just a few short weeks, this unique theatre effort planted seeds that have already begun to grow in the minds of those students who participated. Over time, the increased awareness that is evident among participants should continue to affect how students think and behave, as students apply what they have learned to their own real-life situations."
Excerpted from the quantitative report: "Impact of Headlines Theatre's Anti-Bullying Forum on Secondary Schools" April 4, 2003, by Shelley Hymel, Ph.D., UBC Faculty of Education. The full report is available on our web site