Date of Award
5-2023
Document Type
Thesis - Campus Access Only
First Advisor
Sibyl Kempson
Second Advisor
Caden Manson
Abstract
With greenhouse gas emissions rising and the climate changing at rapid rates, we are nearing a precipice where if we do not cut our emissions environmental disaster will set in. Everyone on this planet will experience the devastating effects. As theatre artists, we must consider our role in the future of climate activism. How can we, as artists, morally continue to create while the world confronts a precipice where life as we know it could become hazardous? In order to ignite activism and reimagine the world we are in, we must critically examine the pieces we create and ask: How can we mold our work to be climate centric and inspire drastic change? This thesis looks to the Environmental Justice Movement and the means they use to mobilize communities in order to determine the course of action theatre practitioners can take with their work. We will look to Roadside Theater and Augusto Boal to determine ways partnership may be created between audience and performer. Finally, Little Amal: In search of the waterfront and Emily Johnson’s body of work — with direct focus on Being Future Being — will be analyzed using three components proposed in this thesis. All this will determine methods theatre artists can use to ignite a desire within their audiences to imagine and actualize positive climate futures post-show.
Recommended Citation
Hamm, Megan, "Climate Theatre: Mobilizing Audiences Towards Activism" (2023). Theatre Thesis - Written Thesis. 10.
https://digitalcommons.slc.edu/theatre_written/10