Czech teachers can invite performances from "You, Me and Them - theater as a forum against prejudice" to their schools

"You, Me and Them – theater as a forum against prejudice" is a joint project of the Antikomplex organization and the Slovo 21 NGO in the Czech Republic. Three teams of actors from three different cities (Ostrava, Písek and Prague) are giving three different performances, the common aim of which is to "develop a culture of dialogue between the majority and minority groups in the Czech Republic and, through theater, to open up a common space leading to the awareness of each individual’s own life situation, power to achieve change, and rights," according to a press release about the project.

Antikomplex and Slovo 21 are offering schools the opportunity to attend these theatrical performances and familiarize themselves with the unique method of forum theater, where audience members become actors for a moment and aid in creatively solving problems created by various forms of oppression. The performances are appropriate for upper primary and high school students.

It is also possible to schedule a performance at a school. Admission to the performances for school groups is free of charge.

Písek (Municipal Library):  We are (all) required to go to school? 

Robert is a student in the first year of high school who lives with his mother and two younger sisters. He is the first person from his family to begin high school.

The entire family is very involved in Robert’s matriculation into high school and are justifiably proud of him. Once at school, however, Robert gets into a situation that places him in the role of an aggressor.

How will this turn out for Robert? Could it turn out differently?

Ostrava (Stará Aréna Theater): Kalrs (Colors) of Ostrava

A group of people from Ostrava ask what we can do together to end the latent racism in our society. Where is the fear coming from?

Where do feelings of superiority come from? Who benefits from all this?

This performance is happening on 3, 10 and 11 December. It lasts 90 minutes and will begin at 10:00 and 13:00 or per agreement with the school.

Prague (Rock Café):  Animated Dream

This group, comprised of representatives of various Asian communities and their friends and schoolmates, tells the story of a dream and how thorny the path to making it come true can be.

Theater as a forum – Theater of the Oppressed

The Theater of the Oppressed aims to combat societal phenomena such as bullying, manipulation, prejudice and racism. The performances are created on the basis of working with the topic of oppression and are based on the actual experiences of the (non)actors.

After viewing the play, a short discussion is held and audience members are invited to intervene to attempt to change the approach taken by the protagonist toward the problem at hand and, thereby, to solve it. This process erases the boundaries between the audience members and the actors – between you and I.