I'm at Newcastle University currently studying a PhD in Invisible Theatre and I'm the Vice President of the student society called the 'Postgraduate Research Society'. The society was holding a welcome event for newcomers and around 60 people showed up. It was my job to support the society's event and I decided to run some image theatre as a game. Now interestingly image theatre has been used mainly as a tool for oppressed communities to express and analyse oppression, but here we are, in an academic context using the technique to build community and engage in each others stories. There is so much emphasis on postgraduates to study hard, work hard and achieve, that there is grievance in the community, however ultimately the ability to go into higher education is a unique privilege on offer to a select few. This event made me reflect on theatre techniques in academia. As the members didn't know they would be doing theatre and embraced the game, maybe there is more to discover in this area.
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