Playback Theatre is an original form of improvisational theatre in which audience or group members tell stories from their lives and watch them enacted on the spot.
139-786: The first Playback Theatre company was founded in 1975 by Jonathan Fox and Jo Salas. Fox was a student of improvisational theatre , oral traditional storytelling , Jacob Moreno 's psychodrama method and the work of educator Paulo Freire . Salas was a trained musician and activist. Both had served as volunteers in developing countries: Fox as a Peace Corps volunteer in Nepal , Salas with New Zealand's Volunteer Service Abroad in Malaysia . The original Playback Theatre Company made its home in Dutchess and Ulster Counties of New York State , just north of New York City. This group, while developing
278-437: A $ 350 million fund to help those affected by the schools. Truth-seeking encompasses initiatives allowing actors in a country to investigate past abuses and seek redress for victims. These processes aim to enable societies to examine and come to terms with past crimes and human rights violations in order to prevent their recurrence. They help create documentation that prevents repressive regimes from rewriting history and denying
417-644: A 300-page training guide on artistic, business, and company development for Playback Theatre (see below). To meet the demand for training which this level of growth has created, in 1993 Jonathan Fox founded the School of Playback Theatre to provide beginning, intermediate and advanced levels of training in Playback Theatre. The School was renamed the Centre for Playback Theatre in 2006, expanding its focus to worldwide development of Playback Theatre. Graduates of
556-520: A Playback event, someone in the audience tells a moment or story from their life, chooses the actors to play the different roles, and then all those present watch the enactment, as the story "comes to life" with artistic shape and nuance. Actors draw on non-naturalistic styles to convey meaning, such as metaphor or song. Playback performers tend to specialize in one of several roles - conductor, actor, or musician. Some companies also have members who specialize in other roles, such as lighting. For audiences,
695-419: A deterrent effect such as behavior modification on the part of would be perpetrators". More recently, Lyal S. Sunga has argued that unless truth commissions are set up and conducted according to international human rights law, international criminal law and international humanitarian law, they risk conflicting or undermining criminal prosecutions , whether these prosecutions are supposed to be carried out at
834-760: A few. The Open Theatre was founded in New York City by a group of former students of acting teacher Nola Chilton , and joined shortly thereafter by director Joseph Chaikin , formerly of The Living Theatre , and Peter Feldman. This avant-garde theatre group explored political, artistic, and social issues. The company, developing work through an improvisational process drawn from Chilton and Viola Spolin , created well-known exercises, such as "sound and movement" and "transformations", and originated radical forms and techniques that anticipated or were contemporaneous with Jerzy Grotowski 's " poor theater " in Poland. During
973-544: A form of exceptionalism whereby justice processes support a political transition. Justice processes could violate or compromise the rule of law, if they safeguarded a transition to democracy. Due to the field's normalisation, justice came to mean ordinary justice in exceptional circumstances. As the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights explained in 2009, transitional justice is 'not a particular conception of justice, such as distributive or retributive justice' but
1112-519: A form of improvised community theatre which is often not comedic and replays stories as shared by members of the audience. The Groundlings is a popular and influential improv theatre and training center in Los Angeles , California. The late Gary Austin , founder of The Groundlings, taught improvisation around the country, focusing especially in Los Angeles. He was widely acclaimed as one of
1251-511: A government or non-state actors; about forty official truth commissions have been created worldwide. One example is the Truth and Reconciliation Commission in South Africa , which was established to help overcome apartheid and reconcile tensions in the country. Another example is the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada which was created as part of a settlement with the survivors of
1390-526: A holistic approach. Some human rights abuses can result in criminal prosecutions, particularly the most serious ones. Investigations to seek the truth and fact-finding processes into human rights violations by non-judicial bodies include Truth Commissions . Reparation programs can be in the form of "individual, collective, material, and/or symbolic" reparations. As a result of investigations, convictions and/or investigations, new or reformed laws may be adopted and institutions reformed, including those related to
1529-576: A popular longform improv format known as The Harold . Others include Keith Johnstone , the British teacher and writer–author of Impro , who founded the Theatre Machine and whose teachings form the foundation of the popular shortform Theatresports format, Dick Chudnow , founder of ComedySportz which evolved its family-friendly show format from Johnstone's Theatersports, and Bill Johnson, creator/director of The Magic Meathands, who pioneered
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#17327981489071668-525: A predetermined game , structure, or idea and driven by an audience suggestion. Many shortform exercises were first created by Viola Spolin, who called them theatre games, influenced by her training from recreational games expert Neva Boyd . The shortform improv comedy television series Whose Line Is It Anyway? has familiarized American and British viewers with shortform. Longform improv performers create shows in which short scenes are often interrelated by story, characters, or themes. Longform shows may take
1807-607: A regional truth commission in the former Yugoslavia (REKOM) have failed due to political obstacles. Recent years have also seen proposals for truth and reconciliation commissions in conflict zones of the Middle East: Israel and Palestine , Iraq , Lebanon , and the Kurdish regions . Another major institutional innovation is the appearance of the variety of lustration programs in Central and Eastern Europe since
1946-410: A restoration of the monarchy. Warren also argues that English poet John Milton "can be seen as an early critic of transitional justice," using the allegory of Sin and Death in his epic poem Paradise Lost to complicate "overly-rosy" depictions of transitional justice. Although transitional justice is engulfed by many critical challenges in addition to the difficulty in measuring its impact, given
2085-482: A rich improv tradition. In 1984, Dick Chudnow (Kentucky Fried Theater) founded ComedySportz in Milwaukee , WI. Expansion began with the addition of ComedySportz-Madison (WI), in 1985. The first Comedy League of America National Tournament was held in 1988, with 10 teams participating. The league is now known as CSz Worldwide and boasts a roster of 29 international cities. In San Francisco, The Committee theater
2224-407: A set of such extraordinary responses, often delivered during critical junctures such as transitions from war to peace or from authoritarianism to democracy. Transitional justice is meant to both redress gross violations and identify avenues to address the structural causes of those violations, such as gender inequality and social exclusion. While transitional justice includes criminal accountability, it
2363-437: A smooth transition to democracy. In addition, the existing judicial system might be weak, corrupt , or ineffective, and in effect make achieving any viable justice difficult. Observers of transitional justice application and processes, such as Makau W. Mutua (2000), have emphasized the difficulties of achieving actual justice through one of the most prominent mechanisms of transitional justice, criminal trials . Commenting on
2502-615: A society where respect for human rights is the core and accountability is routinely practiced as the main goals. In the context of these goals, transitional justice aims at: In general, therefore, one can identify eight broad objectives that transitional justice aims to serve: establishing the truth, providing victims a public platform, holding perpetrators accountable, strengthening the rule of law, providing victims with compensation, effectuating institutional reform, promoting reconciliation, and promoting public deliberation. In order to be effective, transitional justice measures should be part of
2641-431: A society's emergence from conflict. Though it is generally acknowledged that both goals are integral to achieving reconciliation, practitioners often disagree about which goal should be pursued first: justice or peace? Proponents of the "justice" school of thought argue that if all perpetrators of human rights abuses do not stand trial, impunity for crimes will continue into the new regime, preventing it from fully completing
2780-434: A staple of drama education in the early 20th century thanks in part to the progressive education movement initiated by John Dewey in 1916. Some people credit American Dudley Riggs as the first vaudevillian to use audience suggestions to create improvised sketches on stage. Improvisation exercises were developed further by Viola Spolin in the 1940s, 50s, and 60s, and codified in her book Improvisation For The Theater ,
2919-563: A staple of modern improvisational comedy and is the inspiration for the popular television show Whose Line Is It Anyway? Viola Spolin influenced the first generation of modern American improvisers at The Compass Players in Chicago , which led to The Second City . Her son, Paul Sills , along with David Shepherd , started The Compass Players. Following the demise of the Compass Players, Paul Sills began The Second City. They were
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#17327981489073058-399: A technique by Viola Spolin. As with all improv 'offers', improvisers are encouraged to respect the validity and continuity of the imaginary environment defined by themselves and their fellow performers; this means, for example, taking care not to walk through the table or "miraculously" survive multiple bullet wounds from another improviser's gun. Because improvisers may be required to play
3197-622: A technique or as an effect, but rather in expanding the improv genre so as to incorporate techniques and approaches that have long been a legitimate part of European theatre. The Brave New Workshop Comedy Theater (BNW), is a sketch and improvisational comedy theater based in Minneapolis , Minnesota. Started by Dudley Riggs in 1958, the artists of the BNW have been writing, performing and producing live sketch comedy and improvisation performances for 62 years – longer than any other theater in
3336-402: A transition from conflict. The "peace" school of thought, however, argues that the only way to effectively end violence is by granting amnesties and brokering negotiations to persuade criminals to lay down their arms. Examples such as Northern Ireland illustrate how selective amnesties can cease conflict. Moreover, empirical research demonstrates that the level of a justice intervention affects
3475-680: A transition into a more democratic, just, peaceful future. The origins of the transitional justice field can be traced back to the post- World War II period in Europe with the establishment of the International Military Tribunal at Nuremberg and the various de-Nazification programs in Germany and the trials of Japanese soldiers at the Tokyo Tribunal . What became known as the " Nuremberg Trials ", when
3614-417: A transitional justice mechanism; over half tried some form of judicial proceedings. Thus, the use of a truth commission and/or human rights trials among transitional countries is not an isolated or marginal practice, but a widespread social practice occurring in the bulk of transitional countries. Since its emergence, transitional justice has encountered numerous challenges such as identifying victims, deciding
3753-446: A truth commission and human rights trials improved more on their PTS ratings than countries that only had trials. These statistics indicate that transitional justice mechanisms are associated with countries' improving their human rights practices. Transitional justice shows no signs of decreasing in use. Indeed, the incorporation of transitional justice policies, tools and programs in peacebuilding and democratization process operations by
3892-413: A variety of roles without preparation, they need to be able to construct characters quickly with physicality, gestures , accents , voice changes, or other techniques as demanded by the situation. The improviser may be called upon to play a character of a different age or sex. Character motivations are an important part of successful improv scenes, and improvisers must therefore attempt to act according to
4031-609: A way that conforms fully to international law. This type of critique of transitional justice mechanisms might cause some scholars and policymakers to wonder which of the objectives outlined above are most important to achieve, and even the extent to which they are achievable. Truth commissions could be characterized as a second-best alternative and also an affront to rule of law, because of the possibility that amnesty and indemnities will be made exchange for truth. These sets of challenges can raise critical questions for transitional justice in its application. Questions and issues, such as: Can
4170-400: Is 'rather a technical approach to exceptional challenges'. The primary objective of a transitional justice policy is to end the culture of impunity and establish the rule of law in a context of democratic governance. The legal and human rights protection roots of transitional justice impute certain legal obligations on states undergoing transitions. It challenges such societies to strive for
4309-585: Is a process which responds to human rights violations through judicial redress , political reforms and cultural healing efforts in a region or country, and other measures in order to prevent the recurrence of human rights abuse. Transitional justice consists of judicial and non-judicial measures implemented in order to redress legacies of human rights abuses. Such mechanisms "include criminal prosecutions , truth commissions , reparations programs, and various kinds of institutional reforms " as well as memorials, apologies, and various art forms. Transitional justice
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4448-400: Is adaptable for use by therapists who are also trained in Playback Theatre. Clients can gain insight, catharsis, connection, and self-expression through telling their stories and participating in enacting stories of others. Improvisational theatre Improvisational theatre , often called improvisation or improv , is the form of theatre , often comedy , in which most or all of what
4587-412: Is also commonly used to enhance ideation in teams and groups. Many directors have made use of improvisation in the creation of both mainstream and experimental films. Many silent filmmakers such as Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton used improvisation in the making of their films, developing their gags while filming and altering the plot to fit. The Marx Brothers were notorious for deviating from
4726-402: Is also widely discussed in political and legal circles, especially in transitional societies. During political transitions from authoritarian or dictatorial regimes or from civil conflicts to democracy, transitional justice has often provided opportunities for such societies to address past human rights abuses, mass atrocities, or other forms of severe trauma in order to increase the probability of
4865-623: Is an improvisational game show, much like Whose Line Is It Anyway? The BBC sitcoms Outnumbered and The Thick of It also had some improvised elements in them. In the field of the psychology of consciousness , Eberhard Scheiffele explored the altered state of consciousness experienced by actors and improvisers in his scholarly paper Acting: an altered state of consciousness . According to G. William Farthing in The Psychology of Consciousness comparative study, actors routinely enter into an altered state of consciousness (ASC). Acting
5004-480: Is clear that elements of transitional justice have broken the initial mold of post-war jurisprudence. The transitional justice framework has benefited from democratic activists who sought to bolster fledgling democracies and bring them into line with the moral and legal obligations articulated in the international human rights consensus. Canada, Australia, and New Zealand have used transitional justice approaches to address Indigenous oppression. Racial justice issues in
5143-583: Is especially performed in Chicago, New York City, Los Angeles, Austin, Dallas, Boston, Minneapolis, Phoenix, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Seattle, Detroit, Toronto, Vancouver, and Washington, D.C., and is building a growing following in Baltimore, Denver, Kansas City, Montreal, Columbus, New Orleans, Omaha, Rochester, NY, and Hawaii. Outside the United States, longform improv has a growing presence in
5282-733: Is found in the Atellan Farce of 391 BC. From the 16th to the 18th centuries, commedia dell'arte performers improvised based on a broad outline in the streets of Italy. In the 1890s, theatrical theorists and directors such as the Russian Konstantin Stanislavski and the French Jacques Copeau , founders of two major streams of acting theory, both heavily utilized improvisation in acting training and rehearsal. Modern theatrical improvisation games began as drama exercises for children, which were
5421-440: Is instituted at a point of political transition classically from war to positive peace , or more broadly from violence and repression to societal stability (though some times it is done years later) and it is informed by a society's desire to rebuild social trust , reestablish what is right from what is wrong, repair a fractured justice system, and build a democratic system of governance. Given different contexts and implementation
5560-517: Is one of the " signaling mechanisms " that governments can use to show that they are breaking away from past practices. It also argues that transitional justice measures can send signals about the importance of accountability and to improve institutional capacity. In September 2011, the International Center for Transitional Justice (ICTJ) published a report advocating the need to understand traditional transitional justice measures from
5699-439: Is performed is unplanned or unscripted, created spontaneously by the performers. In its purest form, the dialogue, action, story, and characters are created collaboratively by the players as the improvisation unfolds in present time, without use of an already prepared, written script . Improvisational theatre exists in performance as a range of styles of improvisational comedy as well as some non-comedic theatrical performances. It
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5838-419: Is seen as altering most of the 14 dimensions of changed subjective experience which characterize ASCs according to Farthing, namely: attention, perception, imagery and fantasy, inner speech, memory, higher-level thought processes, meaning or significance of experiences, time experience, emotional feeling and expression, level of arousal, self-control, suggestibility, body image, and sense of personal identity. In
5977-458: Is sometimes used in film and television, both to develop characters and scripts and occasionally as part of the final product. Improvisational techniques are often used extensively in drama programs to train actors for stage, film, and television and can be an important part of the rehearsal process. However, the skills and processes of improvisation are also used outside the context of performing arts. This practice, known as applied improvisation ,
6116-567: Is the home of the longest running musical improv show in history at 11 years. In 2012, Lebanese writer and director Lucien Bourjeily used improvisational theater techniques to create a multi-sensory play entitled 66 Minutes in Damascus . This play premiered at the London International Festival of Theater, and is considered one of the most extreme kinds of interactive improvised theater put on stage. The audience play
6255-409: Is the removal of court officials involved in crimes of the fallen Tunisian regime. Under Ben Ali 's rule, courts often facilitated corruption. The removal of implicated officials is a part of the government's efforts to reconcile this abuse. States in times of transition to democracy, since the early 1980s, have been using a variety of transitional justice mechanisms as part of measures to account for
6394-457: Is undergirded by a broader understanding of justice that takes into account a range of victim needs and societal priorities. Transitional justice is necessary so that the SDGs do not leave behind communities in countries that have experienced massive rights violations. Transitional justice has, however, undergone conceptual changes since it was first coined. The 'transitional' prefix used to indicate
6533-664: Is used both by classroom teachers and by visiting performers/leaders. Playback Theatre is used to provide a forum for the exchange of diverse experiences in such contexts as the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina ; Martin Luther King Jr. Day celebrations examining on racial conflict and reconciliation; incarcerated men and women; immigrant and refugee organizations and their host communities; events honoring human rights. Other examples include: A project in Afghanistan trains victims of violence to enact each other's stories in
6672-475: Is used in classrooms as an educational tool and in businesses as a way to develop communication skills, creative problem solving, and supportive team-work abilities that are used by improvisational, ensemble players. It is sometimes used in psychotherapy as a tool to gain insight into a person's thoughts, feelings, and relationships. The earliest well-documented use of improvisational theatre in Western history
6811-414: Is well-established on the west coast with companies such as San Francisco's BATS Improv . This format allows for full-length plays and musicals to be created improvisationally. Many people who have studied improv have noted that the guiding principles of improv are useful, not just on stage, but in everyday life. For example, Stephen Colbert in a commencement address said, Well, you are about to start
6950-689: The African Transitional Justice Research Network (ATJRN) and research centers like the Transitional Justice Institute are strong manifestations of how well placed transitional justice has become a feature in the discourse of transitional politics in the 21st century. Academic publications such as the International Journal of Transitional Justice are also contributing towards building an interdisciplinary field with
7089-673: The Canadian Improv Games . In the United States, the Improv Olympics were later produced by Charna Halpern under the name "ImprovOlympic" and now as "IO"; IO operates training centers and theaters in Chicago and Los Angeles. At IO, Halpern combined Shepherd's "Time Dash" game with Del Close's "Harold" game; the revised format for the Harold became the fundamental structure for the development of modern longform improvisation. In 1975 Jonathan Fox founded Playback Theatre ,
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#17327981489077228-617: The Canadian Indian Residential School System . Memorials seek to preserve memories of people or events. In the context of transitional justice, they serve to honor those who died during conflict or other atrocities, examine the past, address contemporary issues and show respect to victims. They can help create records to prevent denial and help societies move forward. Memorials may include commemoration activities, such as architectural memorials, museums, and other commemorative events. One example includes
7367-673: The International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda that was established in 1994, he argued that it "serves to deflect responsibility, to assuage the consciences of states which were unwilling to stop the genocide ... [and] largely masks the illegitimacy of the Tutsi regime". In sum, Matua argues that criminal tribunals such as those in Rwanda and Yugoslavia are "less meaningful if they cannot be applied or enforced without prejudice to redress transgressions or unless they have
7506-703: The Special Court for Sierra Leone and the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia . The Gacaca for Rwanda was presented by the Rwandan authorities as being a hybrid system. The Special Jurisdiction for Peace in Colombia could also be considered one. Reparations aim to repair the suffering of victims of human rights abuses. They seek to make amends with victims, help them overcome
7645-634: The United Nations (UN) and in the programs by many local and international democracy promotion organizations, including, the Stockholm-based International Institute for Electoral Assistance and Democracy (International IDEA) and a host of others as well as the establishments of other international non-governmental organizations (INGOs) and networks such as the International Center for Transitional Justice (ICTJ), Institute for Justice and Reconciliation (IJR) and
7784-493: The props that might be useful in a scene. Improv companies may have at their disposal some number of readily accessible props that can be called upon at a moment's notice, but many improvisers eschew props in favor of the infinite possibilities available through mime . In improv, this is more commonly known as 'space object work' or 'space work', rather than 'mime', and the props and locations created by this technique, as 'space objects' created out of 'space substance', developed as
7923-425: The "police, judiciary, military, and military intelligence." In some cases there are efforts to memorialization of the abuses. Affirmative action policies are sometimes used to facilitate transition. Gender justice ensures women have equal access to the mechanisms. The investigation and prosecution of serious international crimes, such as genocide , crimes against humanity , and war crimes helps to strengthen
8062-647: The "truth" ever really be established? Can all victims be given compensation or a public platform? Can all perpetrators be held accountable? Or is it sufficient to acknowledge that atrocities were committed and that victims should be compensated for their suffering? Also, one might argue that too narrow a focus on the challenges of the field runs the risk of making transitional justice seem meaningless. However transitional justice aims at an ongoing search for truth, justice, forgiveness, and healing, and efforts undertaken within it help people to live alongside former enemies. Simply put, "the past must be addressed in order to reach
8201-410: The 1970s and 1980s was on criminal justice with a focus on human rights promotion. This led to a worldwide focus and progressive rise of human rights regime culminating in the establishments of international human rights laws and conventions. The emphasis of transitional justice was on how abuses of human rights get treated during political transition: legal and criminal prosecution. As noted earlier,
8340-402: The 1990s. While most countries pursued programs based on dismissals of compromised personnel and comprehensive screening tools, other countries implemented more inclusive methods allowing discredited personnel a second chance. As a link between transition and justice, the concept of transitional justice transformed in the late 1940s to assume a broader perspective of comprehensive examination of
8479-659: The Dili District Court , Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia , Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina , and the establishment of the International Criminal Court (ICC), assuming a universal jurisdiction . The ICC and Hybrid Courts/Tribunals are key components of prosecution initiatives: The International Criminal Court (ICC) was established by the Rome Statute in 1998. It is the first permanent international criminal court. It
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#17327981489078618-517: The ICTJ, the term "transitional justice" was coined by various American academics in the 1990s to "describe the different ways that countries had approached the problems of new regimes coming to power faced with massive violations by their predecessors." The ICTJ says that transitional justice "refers to the ways countries emerging from periods of conflict and repression address large-scale or systematic human rights violations so numerous and so serious that
8757-582: The Past in Unified Germany (2001), West German policymakers such as former chancellor Helmut Kohl wanted to close public access to the files of East Germany's secret police, the Stasi , but pressures from East German dissidents prevented them from doing so. Another challenge is the tension between peace and justice, which arises from the conflicting goals of achieving peace and justice in the aftermath of
8896-593: The UK Channel 4 and ABC television series Whose Line Is It Anyway (and its spinoffs Drew Carey's Green Screen Show and Drew Carey's Improv-A-Ganza ), Nick Cannon's improv comedy show Wild 'N Out , and Thank God You're Here . A very early American improv television program was the weekly half-hour What Happens Now? which premiered on New York's WOR-TV on October 15, 1949, and ran for 22 episodes. "The Improvisers" were six actors (including Larry Blyden , Ross Martin , and Jean Alexander – Jean Pugsley at
9035-722: The United Kingdom , especially in cities such as London, Bristol, Glasgow, and at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe . Other forms of improvisational theatre training and performance techniques are experimental and avant-garde in nature and not necessarily intended to be comedic . These include Playback Theatre and Theatre of the Oppressed , the Poor Theatre , the Open Theatre , to name only
9174-471: The United States have been discussed using transitional justice language. One particular innovation is the appearance of truth commissions . Beginning with Argentina in 1983, Chile in 1990, and South Africa in 1995, truth commissions have become a symbol of transitional justice, appearing in transitional societies in Latin America, Africa, Asia, and Eastern Europe. However, several attempts to create
9313-441: The ability to achieve these outcomes varies. The core value of transitional justice is the very notion of justice—which does not necessarily mean criminal justice. This notion and the political transformation, such as regime change or transition from conflict are thus linked to a more peaceful, certain, and democratic future. Transitional justice in the modern era has received greater attention from both academics and policymakers. It
9452-457: The active performers can seem preternaturally gifted, as they create their performances without a script or score. Following the practice of the original company, most companies do not consult or "huddle" prior to beginning the story, trusting instead to a shared understanding of the story they have heard and a readiness to respond to each other's cues. The role of conductor, by contrast, can seem relatively easy, involving as it does conversing with
9591-556: The audience as a group or individually, and generally involving no acting. However, it is recognized within the community of Playback performers as the most difficult role to fill successfully. Playback Theatre is used in a broad range of settings: theatres and community centres (where performances take place for the general public), in schools, private sector organizations, nonprofit organizations, prisons, hospice centers, day treatment centers, at conferences of all kinds, and colleges and universities. Playback theatre has also been used in
9730-410: The audience. Improv groups frequently solicit suggestions from the audience as a source of inspiration, a way of getting the audience involved, and as a means of proving that the performance is not scripted. That charge is sometimes aimed at the masters of the art, whose performances can seem so detailed that viewers may suspect the scenes are planned. In order for an improvised scene to be successful,
9869-658: The basis for his own theatre, The Empty Stage, which in turn bred multiple troupes utilizing this style. In the late 1990s, Matt Besser , Amy Poehler , Ian Roberts , and Matt Walsh founded the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre in New York and later they founded one in Los Angeles, each with an accompanying improv/sketch comedy school. In September 2011 the UCB opened a third theatre in New York City's East Village, known as UCBeast. Hoopla Impro are
10008-455: The basis of the Playback form, took it to schools, prisons, centers for the elderly, conferences, and festivals in an effort to encourage individuals from all walks of society to let their stories be heard. They also performed monthly for the public-at-large. The Playback Theatre idea has inspired many people. As an immediate result of a teaching and performing tour by some of the members of
10147-449: The concept of "Commun-edy Outreach" by tailoring performances to non-traditional audiences, such as the homeless and foster children. David Shepherd , with Paul Sills, founded The Compass Players in Chicago. Shepherd was intent on developing a true "people's Theatre", and hoped to bring political drama to the stockyards. The Compass went on to play in numerous forms and companies, in a number of cities including New York and Hyannis, after
10286-480: The conditions of possibility for a negotiated solution to end civil war. Recent trends in the post-conflict field have tended to favor the "justice" school of thought, maintaining that only if justice is dutifully served to victims of the conflict can civil war will be prevented from recurring. A 2011 debate in The Economist determined in its concluding polls that 76% of the debate participants agreed with
10425-473: The consequences of abuse, and provide rehabilitation. Reperations can fall along two axis, material or symbolic and individual or collective. Material reperations are the physical forms of reperations that are most commonly thought of such as money or the restoration of land. Symbolic reparations are the intangible forms reparations can take such as apologies, memorials, and commemorations. Individual repartions benefit individuals while collective reparations benefit
10564-701: The context of transitional justice. A project in Melbourne, Australia trains youth to enact stories of refugee youths' experiences in the context of interactions with police; and to enact stories of police experiences in the context of interactions with refugee youth. The purpose of which is to bridge understanding between these two groups (2010, 2011). Since the mid-1990s Playback Theatre and allied techniques have increasingly been used as an effective tool in workplace training of subjects such as management and communication skills and diversity awareness. In some cases, participants describe events which have taken place in
10703-457: The corporate world. In a New York Times article titled "Can Executives Learn to Ignore the Script?" , Stanford professor and author, Patricia Ryan Madson notes, "executives and engineers and people in transition are looking for support in saying yes to their own voice. Often, the systems we put in place to keep us secure are keeping us from our more creative selves." Applying improv principles
10842-648: The creation of democratic institutions. According to the International Center for Transitional Justice (ICTJ) and the international Task Force on Justice , an integral element of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) includes the reduction of the "justice gap" The Working Group on Transitional Justice and SDG16+ said that "while the SDGs are universal", "massive and serious human rights violations create conditions in which extraordinary justice interventions are required to make progress toward sustainable peace and development." According to
10981-399: The entire group who has suffered. They may include financial payments, social services including health care or education, or symbolic compensation such as public apologies. Apologies play a pivotal role in transitional justice processes by acknowledging historical injustices and fostering reconciliation within divided societies. They serve as symbolic gestures of accountability, validating
11120-486: The experiences of victims and survivors. Moreover, apologies contribute to the restoration of trust in institutions, paving the way for societal healing and the prevention of future conflicts. One example is the Canadian government's apology "Statement of Reconciliation" to indigenous Canadian families for removing their children and placing them in church-run Indian Residential Schools . The Canadian government also created
11259-424: The extent to which to punish superiors or middle agents, avoiding a "victor's justice", and finding adequate resources for compensation, trial, or institutional reform. Also, the transitional period may only result in a tenuous peace or fragile democracy. As has been noted in the discourse on transition to democracy, the dilemma has always been for new regimes to promote accountability for past abuses without risking
11398-417: The field of transitional justice has become standardised. This is curious given the field's emphasis of context-sensitive justice processes. The World Bank 's "2011 World Development Report on Conflict, Security, and Development" links transitional justice to security and development. It explores how countries can avoid cycles of violence and emphasizes the importance of transitional justice, arguing that it
11537-668: The film. This Is Spinal Tap and other mockumentary films of director Christopher Guest were created with a mix of scripted and unscripted material. Blue in the Face is a 1995 comedy directed by Wayne Wang and Paul Auster created in part by the improvisations during the filming of Smoke . Some of the best known American film directors who used improvisation in their work with actors are John Cassavetes , Robert Altman , Christopher Guest, and Rob Reiner . Improv comedy techniques have also been used in hit television shows such as HBO's Curb Your Enthusiasm created by Larry David ,
11676-470: The first book that gave specific techniques for learning to do and teach improvisational theater. In 1977, Clive Barker 's book Theatre Games (several translations and editions) spread the ideas of improv internationally. British playwright and director Keith Johnstone wrote Impro: Improvisation and the Theatre , a book outlining his ideas on improvisation, and invented Theatresports , which has become
11815-433: The first organized improv troupes in Chicago, and the modern Chicago improvisational comedy movement grew from their success. Many of the current "rules" of comedic improv were first formalized in Chicago in the late 1950s and early 1960s, initially among The Compass Players troupe, which was directed by Paul Sills. From most accounts, David Shepherd provided the philosophical vision of the Compass Players, while Elaine May
11954-441: The following fields: transitional justice , human rights , civic dialogue, refugees and immigrants, disaster recovery, climate change , birthdays, weddings, and conferences. Playback practitioners have used the method in schools on issues such as bullying (students tell stories about their experiences in relation to bullying, watch them played back, and then explore ways to create a respectful and safe school environment). Playback
12093-410: The form of an existing type of theatre, for example a full-length play or Broadway -style musical such as Spontaneous Broadway . One of the better-known longform structures is the Harold , developed by ImprovOlympic co-founder Del Close . Many such longform structures now exist. Actors such as Will Ferrell, Tina Fey, and Steve Carrell found their start in longform improv. Longform improvisation
12232-438: The former Yugoslavia ( ICTY ) and Rwanda ( ICTR ). These courts consist of both international and domestic justice actors. They attempt to deliver justice that the domestic justice systems cannot provide alone due to lack of capacity or political will. Furthermore, hybrid courts attempt to strengthen domestic capacities to prosecute human rights abuses through the transfer of international legal skills and expertise. Examples include
12371-626: The founders of the UK and London's first improv theatre. They also run an annual UK improv festival and improv marathon. In 2015, The Free Association opened in London as a counterpart to American improv schools. In 2016, The Glasgow Improv Theatre started putting on shows and teaching classes in Glasgow, growing the improv scene in Scotland. Transitional justice Transitional justice
12510-558: The founding of The Second City. A number of Compass members were also founding members of The Second City. In the 1970s, Shepherd began experimenting with group-created videos. He is the author of That Movie In Your Head , about these efforts. In the 1970s, David Shepherd and Howard Jerome created the Improvisational Olympics, a format for competition based improv. The Improv Olympics were first demonstrated at Toronto's Homemade Theatre in 1976 and have been continued on as
12649-606: The franchise has produced such comedy stars as Mike Myers , Tina Fey , Bob Odenkirk , Amy Sedaris , Stephen Colbert , Eugene Levy , Jack McBrayer , Steve Carell , Chris Farley , Dan Aykroyd , and John Belushi . Simultaneously, Keith Johnstone's group The Theatre Machine, which originated in London , was touring Europe. This work gave birth to Theatresports , at first secretly in Johnstone's workshops, and eventually in public when he moved to Canada. Toronto has been home to
12788-450: The future". Thus, even if the impact or reach of transitional justice seems marginal, the end result is worth the effort. Another way of assessing attempts at transitional justice is to say that decision makers may have less control over the methods used to pursue such policies than they imagine. In fact, whatever their wishes, they may not be able to prevent such policies at all. As A. James McAdams has demonstrated in his book, Judging
12927-484: The greatest acting teachers in America. His work was grounded in the lessons he learned as an improviser at The Committee with Del Close, as well as in his experiences as founding director of The Groundlings. The Groundlings is often seen as the Los Angeles training ground for the "second generation" of improv performers and troupes. Stan Wells developed the "Clap-In" style of longform improvisation here, later using this as
13066-413: The greatest improvisation of all. With no script. No idea what's going to happen, often with people and places you have never seen before. And you are not in control. So say "yes." And if you're lucky, you'll find people who will say "yes" back. Tina Fey , in her book Bossypants , lists several rules of improv that apply in the workplace. There has been much interest in bringing lessons from improv into
13205-555: The growing field of Drama Therapy , psychodramatic improvisation, along with other techniques developed for Drama Therapy , are used extensively. The "Yes, and" rule has been compared to Milton Erickson 's utilization process and to a variety of acceptance-based psychotherapies. Improv training has been recommended for couples therapy and therapist training, and it has been speculated that improv training may be helpful in some cases of social anxiety disorder . Improvisational theatre often allows an interactive relationship with
13344-445: The hope that future innovations are tailored to a specific state's situation and will contribute towards political transitions that address the past as well as establish guarantees for respect of human rights and democracy. The mainstreaming of transitional justice, the many toolkit publications, manuals, and workshops as well as the common conceptualisations used across national, regional and international policy programmes indicate that
13483-645: The human rights movement and in international human rights and humanitarian law. These origins in the human rights movement have rendered transitional justice "self-consciously victim-centric". The late 1980s and early 1990s saw a shift in the focus of transitional justice. Informed by the worldwide wave of democratization, particularly the third wave , transitional justice reemerged as a new field of study in democratization. Transitional justice broadened its scope from more narrow questions of jurisprudence to political considerations of developing stable democratic institutions and renewing civil society. Studies by scholars on
13622-404: The improvisers involved must work together responsively to define the parameters and action of the scene, in a process of co-creation . With each spoken word or action in the scene, an improviser makes an offer , meaning that he or she defines some element of the reality of the scene. This might include giving another character a name, identifying a relationship, location, or using mime to define
13761-414: The irrational and the subconscious have been part of the stage tradition for centuries. From the 1990s onwards a growing number of European Improv groups have been set up specifically to explore the possibilities offered by the use of the abstract in improvised performance, including dance, movement, sound, music, mask work, lighting, and so on. These groups are not especially interested in comedy, either as
13900-546: The late 1960s, Augusto Boal 's "Forum Theatre" in South America in the early 1970s, and San Francisco's The Diggers ' work in the 1960s. Some of this work led to pure improvisational performance styles, while others simply added to the theatrical vocabulary and were, on the whole, avant-garde experiments. Joan Littlewood , an English actress and director who was active from the 1950s to 1960s, made extensive use of improv in developing plays for performance. However, she
14039-453: The mid-1960s, Viola Spolin's classes were handed over to her protégé, Jo Forsberg , who further developed Spolin's methods into a one-year course, which eventually became The Players Workshop , the first official school of improvisation in the United States. During this time, Forsberg trained many of the performers who went on to star on The Second City stage. Many of the original cast of Saturday Night Live came from The Second City, and
14178-569: The monuments, annual prayer ceremony, and mass grave in northern Uganda , created in response to the war conducted by and against the Lord's Resistance Army there. Another example is Fragmentos, an abstract memorial created by Doris Salcedo alongside the survivors of sexual abuse from the Colombian Conflict . It consists of 1,296 tiles made from 37 tons of melted down metal from the weapons of 13,000 former guerilla fighters to memorialize
14317-410: The motion that achieving peace can occur only through implementing justice mechanisms. Literary scholars and historians have begun to use the concept of transitional justice to reexamine historical events and texts. Christopher N. Warren, for instance, has applied transitional justice to pre- Restoration England , claiming that it helps explain how Anglican royalists convinced Presbyterians to assent to
14456-603: The nation. Notable alumni of the BNW include Louie Anderson , Mo Collins , Tom Davis , Al Franken , Penn Jillette , Carl Lumbly , Paul Menzel , Pat Proft , Annie Reirson, Taylor Nikolai, Nancy Steen , Peter Tolan , Linda Wallem , Lizz Winstead , Peter MacNicol , Melissa Peterman , and Cedric Yarbrough . Some key figures in the development of improvisational theatre are Viola Spolin and her son Paul Sills , founder of Chicago's famed Second City troupe and originator of Theater Games , and Del Close , founder of ImprovOlympic (along with Charna Halpern ) and creator of
14595-488: The national or international levels. He contends that this risk is particularly pronounced where truth commissions employ amnesties, and especially blanket amnesties to pardon perpetrators of serious crimes. On the other hand, criminal prosecutions should be better tailored to focus on victims and to place events in proper perspective. Sunga therefore proposes ten principles for making truth and national reconciliation commissions fully complementary to criminal prosecutions in
14734-448: The normal justice system will not be able to provide an adequate response." Measures used include criminal prosecutions , truth commissions , reparations and restitution programs, exhumation of mass graves, apologies, amnesty, memorials, film, literature, scientific research, rewriting school textbooks, lustration and vetting, and various kinds of institutional reforms to redress human rights abuses. Transitional justice represents
14873-424: The number of other factors in any given country's experience over time, human rights trials or truth commissions need not have a negative effect on human rights practices. This makes transitional justice viable, especially in this age of state-building and democracy promotion in post-conflict societies. Each state that employs transitional justice mechanisms will have to determine which mechanisms to use to best achieve
15012-416: The objectives that they believe their character seeks. In improv formats with multiple scenes, an agreed-upon signal is used to denote scene changes. Most often, this takes the form of a performer running in front of the scene, known as a "wipe". Tapping a character in or out can also be employed. The performers not currently part of the scene often stand at the side or back of the stage, and can enter or exit
15151-469: The original Playback Theatre Company to Australasia in 1980, companies were founded in Sydney (1980), Melbourne (1981), Perth , and Wellington . All four companies still exist, and are now the oldest extant companies in the world. Since that time the form has spread throughout North America and Europe, and Playback companies now exist on six continents. The International Playback Theatre Network (IPTN)
15290-576: The part of kidnapped tourists in today's Syria in a hyperreal sensory environment. Rob Wittig and Mark C. Marino have developed a form of improv for online theatrical improvisation called netprov . The form relies on social media to engage audiences in the creation of dynamic fictional scenarios that evolve in real-time. Modern improvisational comedy, as it is practiced in the West, falls generally into two categories: shortform and longform. Shortform improv consists of short scenes usually constructed from
15429-415: The past and build a future democratic state. Mechanisms, such as trials, truth commissions, reparations, lustration, museums, and other memory sites have been employed either single-handedly or in a combined form to address past human rights violations. Diverse studies ranging from the decision-making process of a choice of strategy through to the implementation of the transitional justice policy and impacts on
15568-432: The past. They can also help victims obtain closure by knowing the truth about what actually happened (such as to "disappeared" people) and understanding the atrocities they endured. Truth-seeking measures may include freedom of information legislation , declassification of archives, investigations, and truth commissions. Truth commissions are non-judicial commissions of inquiry that aim to discover and reveal past abuses by
15707-487: The peace agreement between the government of Colombia and FARC . Public institutions, including the police , military , and judiciary , often contribute to repression and other human rights violations. When societies undergo a transition, these institutions must be reformed in order to create accountability and prevent the recurrence of abuse. Institutional reform includes the process of restructuring these state actors to ensure that they respect human rights and abide by
15846-436: The physical environment. These activities are also known as endowment . It is the responsibility of the other improvisers to accept the offers that their fellow performers make; to not do so is known as blocking, negation, or denial, which usually prevents the scene from developing. Some performers may deliberately block (or otherwise break out of character) for comedic effect—this is known as gagging —but this generally prevents
15985-542: The rule of law by sanctioning those who violate laws with criminal penalties. It also demonstrates that crime will not be tolerated, and that human rights abusers will be held accountable for their actions. From its historical roots in the Nuremberg Trials , recent examples have included International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda and International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia , hybrid courts such as Special Court for Sierra Leone , Special Panels of
16124-602: The rule of law. Reforms can include measures such as vetting , lustration , and Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration (DDR). Vetting is the process of eliminating corrupt or abusive officials from public service employment. For instance, in Afghanistan , election candidates in the 2009 and 2010 elections were vetted. While similar to lustration, "vetting" is the broader category referring to processes aimed at screening and excluding human rights abusers from public institutions while "lustration" refers specifically to
16263-407: The scene by stepping into or out of the stage center. Many theatre troupes are devoted to staging improvisational performances and growing the improv community through their training centers. In addition to for-profit theatre troupes, there are many college-based improv groups in the United States and around the world. In Europe the special contribution to the theatre of the abstract, the surreal,
16402-400: The scene from advancing and is frowned upon by many improvisers. Accepting an offer is usually accompanied by adding a new offer, often building on the earlier one; this is a process improvisers refer to as Yes, and... and is considered the cornerstone of improvisational technique. Every new piece of information added helps the improvisers to refine their characters and progress the action of
16541-530: The scene. The Yes, and... rule, however, applies to a scene's early stage since it is in this stage that a "base (or shared) reality" is established in order to be later redefined by applying the "if (this is true), then (what else can also be true)" practice progressing the scene into comedy, as explained in the 2013 manual by the Upright Citizens Brigade members. The unscripted nature of improv also implies no predetermined knowledge about
16680-402: The script they were given, their ad libs often becoming part of the standard routine and making their way into their films. Many people, however, make a distinction between ad-libbing and improvising. The British director Mike Leigh makes extensive use of improvisation in the creation of his films, including improvising important moments in the characters' lives that will not even appear in
16819-601: The sixties, Chaikin and the Open Theatre developed full theatrical productions with nothing but the actors, a few chairs, and a bare stage, creating character, time, and place through a series of transformations the actors physicalized and discovered through improvisations. On the west coast, Ruth Zaporah developed Action Theatre , a physically based improvisation form that treats language, movement and voice equally. Action Theatre performances have no scripts, no preplanned ideas and create full-length shows or shorter performances. Longform, dramatic, and narrative-based improvisation
16958-496: The society in transition from a retrospective to a prospective position with democratic consolidation as one of the primary objectives. Scholars and practitioners of democratization have come to a common conclusion on the general principles of a transitional justice framework: that national strategies to confront past abuses, depending on the specific nature and context of the country in question, can contribute to accountability, an end to impunity, reconstruct state–citizen relations, and
17097-594: The street at the Intersection for the Arts would drop by and sit in. In 1979, Elk brought shortform to England, teaching workshops at Jacksons Lane Theatre, and he was the first American to perform at The Comedy Store, London , above a Soho strip club. Modern political improvisation's roots include Jerzy Grotowski 's work in Poland during the late 1950s and early 1960s, Peter Brook 's "happenings" in England during
17236-597: The targeted goals. In order to avoid causing disappointment amongst victims, the state should also ensure that the public is well-informed about the goals and limits of those mechanisms. Sikkink and Walling's comparison of human rights conditions before and after trials in Latin American countries with two or more trial years showed that eleven of the fourteen countries had better Political Terror Scale (PTS) ratings after trials. Latin American countries that had both
17375-426: The time) who improvised skits based on situations suggested by viewers. In Canada, the series Train 48 was improvised from scripts which contained a minimal outline of each scene, and the comedy series This Sitcom Is...Not to Be Repeated incorporated dialogue drawn from a hat during the course of an episode. The American show Reno 911! also contained improvised dialogue based on a plot outline. Fast and Loose
17514-451: The training program may become accredited trainers of Playback Theatre (APTTs). Other schools for training exist in Italy, Germany, Japan. and São Paulo, Brazil, Russia, United Kingdom, Israel, Hungary, Hong Kong, Australasia and Sweden. The Playback Centre keeps an online list of affiliated schools There are regular and semi-regular Playback gatherings and festivals in different parts of
17653-458: The transition and future stability of the society in question have been produced by scholars in recent years. One illuminating study in particular that has documented the dramatic new trend of transitional justice and democratization is by Kathryn Sikkink and Carrie Booth Walling (2006). In their research paper described as the "justice cascade", Sikkink and Walling conducting analysis of truth commissions and human rights trials occurring throughout
17792-517: The transition from autocratic regimes to democratic ones have integrated the transitional justice framework into an examination of the political processes inherent to democratic change. The challenges of democratization in transitional periods are many: settling past accounts without derailing democratic progress, developing judicial or third-party fora capable of resolving conflicts, reparations, and creating memorials and developing educational curricula that redress cultural lacunae and unhealed trauma. It
17931-444: The universal conceptions of "justice" became the platform on which transitional justice was premised. The field in its early epistemology , thus, assumed jurisprudence of human rights. As a result, the initial literature on transitional justice was dominated by lawyers, law, and legal rights: defining laws, and processes on how to deal with human rights abuse and holding people accountable. Thus, transitional justice has its roots in both
18070-587: The vetting processes and laws that were implemented in the former communist countries in Eastern and Central Europe after the end of the Cold War . Vetting does not necessarily imply dismissals from the state apparatus. Several countries developed alternative personnel systems that provide for the inclusion of inherited personnel in exchange for their exposure or confession. DDR programs assist ex‑combatants in rejoining society. One example of institutional reform
18209-537: The victorious allied forces extended criminal justice to Japanese and German soldiers and their leaders for war crimes committed during the war, marked the genesis of transitional justice. The field gained momentum and coherence during the 1980s and onwards, beginning with the trials of former members of the military juntas in Greece (1975), and Argentina ( Trial of the Juntas , 1983). The focus of transitional justice in
18348-421: The workplace, often events which gave rise to conflict or difficult feelings. Playback actors "replay" the events described and the facilitator orchestrates discussion about the replay, from which many participants describe valuable learning outcomes. A workplace performance can also invite any kind of stories, from out of the work environment. Although Playback Theatre is not primarily a therapeutic technique, it
18487-400: The world from 1979 to 2004 revealed a significant increase in the judicialization of world politics both regionally and internationally. Of the 192 countries surveyed, 34 have used truth commissions, and 50 had at least one transitional human rights trial. More than two-thirds of the approximately 85 new and/or transitional countries during that period used either trials or truth commissions as
18626-1385: The world, including in Finland, the UK, Italy, Germany, Eastern Europe, Israel, Hong Kong, Nepal and India. Playback North America, a network of playback companies in North America, has held several conferences. The International Playback Theatre Network (IPTN) holds a conference every four years in different parts of the world. IPTN conferences have taken place in Sydney, Australia (1992), in a village north of Helsinki, Finland (1993), in Olympia, Washington, USA (1995), Perth, Australia (1997), York, England (1999), Shizuoka, Japan (2003), São Paulo, Brazil (2007), Frankfurt, Germany (2011), Montreal, Canada (2015), and Bangalore, India (2019). The next international conference will take place in South Africa in December, 2023. The Playback 'form' as developed by Fox and Salas utilizes component theatrical forms or pieces, developed from its sources in improvisational theatre , storytelling , and psychodrama . These components include scenes (also called stories or vignettes) and narrative or non-narrative short forms, including "fluid sculptures", "pairs", and "chorus". In
18765-688: Was active in North Beach during the 1960s. It was founded by alumni of Chicago's Second City, Alan Myerson and his wife Jessica. When The Committee disbanded in 1972, three major companies were formed: The Pitchell Players, The Wing, and Improvisation Inc. The only company that continued to perform Close's Harold was the latter one. Its two former members, Michael Bossier and John Elk, formed Spaghetti Jam in San Francisco's Old Spaghetti Factory in 1976, where shortform improv and Harolds were performed through 1983. Stand-up comedians performing down
18904-408: Was central to the development of the premises for its improvisations. Mike Nichols , Ted Flicker, and Del Close were her most frequent collaborators in this regard. When The Second City opened its doors on December 16, 1959, directed by Paul Sills, his mother Viola Spolin began training new improvisers through a series of classes and exercises which became the cornerstone of modern improv training. By
19043-461: Was established to investigate and try leaders of genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity in cases where countries are unable or unwilling to do so. Hybrid courts and tribunals have emerged as "third generation" courts established to investigate and prosecute human rights offenses. They follow the "first generation" Nuremberg and Tokyo tribunals and the "second generation" International Criminal Court and International Criminal Tribunals for
19182-673: Was founded in 1990 to support Playback activity throughout the world through international conferences and the IPTN Journal (formerly Interplay). As of 2018, the IPTN has 192 group members and 320 practitioner and individual members from 40 countries. A network was started in 2011 for people interested in Playback Theatre in North America. As of 2022, 55 active companies perform, predominantly in their local communities. Playback North America hosts regular teleconferences, periodic gatherings, leadership coaching, and several publications, including
19321-557: Was successfully prosecuted twice for allowing her actors to improvise in performance. Until 1968, British law required scripts to be approved by the Lord Chamberlain's Office . The department also sent inspectors to some performances to check that the approved script was performed exactly as approved. In 1987, Annoyance Theatre began as a club in Chicago that emphasizes longform improvisation. The Annoyance Theatre has grown into multiple locations in Chicago and New York City. It
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