Citation

Moller L. Arts Psychoth. 2013; 40(1): 61-70.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2013, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.aip.2012.09.007

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

A prison theatre workshop at Bayview Correctional Facility (BCF) in Manhattan combines improvisational techniques, play rehearsal, and performance. Ten women participate for eight weeks as cast and crew in a production of For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow is Enuf by African American playwright Ntozake Shange. The characters reflect different types of women in critical situations, breaking the long held silence marginalized women feel due to oppression. Written in poetic verse, scenes dramatize rites of passage, sisterhood and female sexuality, abandonment, poverty, abuse, rape, and unrequited love providing many archetypal roles that resonate with the actors and prison audience.This article is a descriptive account using both narrative and journal entries written contemporaneously during the production, focusing on the obstacles of mounting a theatrical production within a prison setting and on the challenges of working with female offenders.Archetypical roles from Robert Landy's extensive work in drama therapy are referenced to reflect the function and diversity of role types in the drama and to illustrate how the artistic work expands the diminished life roles of women in prison. Thoughts on Agusto Boal's theory regarding invitational theatre, within the setting of a prison, are discussed. © 2012 Elsevier Inc.

Language: en

Keywords

human; suicide; Performance; psychotherapy; prison; play; article; sexuality; priority journal; environmental factor; prisoner; offender; scientific literature; verbal communication; " For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow is Enuf"; Archetypal roles; drama therapy; Drama therapy; Incarcerated women; Prison theatre; Robert Landy; Role deprivation