Forum Theatre for Bystanders

Abstract

This article introduces the “Forum Theatre for Bystanders” (FTB) approach to gender violence prevention as practiced by social change groups at several midwestern universities in the United States. Largely informed by Augusto Boal’s Theatre of the Oppressed and contemporary research on bystander theory, the Forum Theatre for Bystanders model offers a community-based approach that increases bystander responsibility and reduces victim blaming. The authors describe this model in detail and offer examples from their work to demonstrate its usefulness and efficacy.