3. Stakeholders involved in work with people who are suffering from unresolved loss should consider
using Playback Theater as a method for people to process and acknowledge loss in a supportive community
setting. All members of Playback Theater troupes engaging in loss/trauma-related events should be trained
in trauma-sensitive techniques to portray difficult events in a healing way without re-traumatizing anyone.
4. Stakeholders working with at-risk youth in conflict prevention or post-conflict settings should consider
utilizing participatory Playback Theater methods. Additional context-specific interventions should be
designed alongside arts-based interventions, such as psycho-social counseling, education coaching, or job
skills training. Playback Theater can complement these interventions by offering a positive outlet for youth
to process their transitions and challenges while supporting each other.
Implications.
If people in conflict-affected regions or divided societies are given an artistic means of expression, then
they might identify, acknowledge, and peacefully address what they feel instead of expressing negative
emotions in violent or destructive ways. If people in divided societies do not have an opportunity to hear
people’s stories from across the divide (through playback or other arts-based interventions), people may
continue to perpetuate false stereotypes. When listening to stories that build empathy and understanding,
however, people can get past divisive positions and form a more respectful and unifying vision.
If Playback Theater is used as a trauma-sensitive mechanism in a safe space for people processing loss,
then audience participants may experience community acknowledgement and as such be more equipped
to break out of traumatic/violent cycles of acting in and acting out. Without safety and support and
community acknowledgement, it is more difficult for people with past traumatic experiences to resolve
their losses. If Playback Theater troupe members are not trained in trauma-awareness and specific indirect
methods of portraying violent events, they then may unintentionally re-traumatize audience members. If
youth are offered creative methods with which to express their experiences and challenges of transition,
then arts-based community tools such as Playback Theater (alongside additional complementary
interventions) may increase their sense of belonging, reducing the potential for violent conflict.
Event Description.
This lesson is based on experiences from members of Inside Out Playback Theater. Inside Out is a
Playback Theater group founded at Eastern Mennonite University (EMU) in spring 2012. It is currently
composed of a network of undergraduate students, graduate students, and alumni. Originally used to
support re-entry for students returning to the university from studying abroad, Inside Out has expanded
its work to include community-building around themes of sexual violence, incarceration, immigration,
personal narrative, and racial reconciliation, at schools, arts festivals, workshops, and conferences, in
partnership with a variety of organizations and non-profits. Inside Out has also recently been awarded
Catalyst Initiative and JustPax grants to continue its work with issues of race and immigration.
Training courses and regional Playback Theater troupes can be found at the Centre for Playback Theatre
and the International Playback Theatre Network (IPTN). For additional information about trauma-
sensitivity in storytelling through Playback Theater, see: “Truth-Telling, Reconciliation, & the Arts,” L.
Bajare-Dukes, (Including Tips from Dr. Pamela Freeman), Prezi, (15 May 2017); Resource presented at
the 6 th meeting of the National Association for Community and Restorative Justice, Oakland, CA.
Additional sources and resources can be found on the Lesson (#2636) on SOLLIMS.
Lesson Author: Katrina Gehman, Lessons Learned Analyst (Ctr), PKSOI
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