Child’s play? Don’t kid yourself!

Settle in, I’m going to tell you a story. Well, more a story about storytelling really. Confused? Don’t worry, all will unfold…..just like a good story!

It all began in Germany…..and Brazil. No, this isn’t about football. It’s about the drama team at 2macs and how we ended up doing what we do.

When we are out and about utilising our drama techniques in the UK and abroad, we are often asked if we originally invented the way we use drama to effect such high impact change. And while it might be very tempting for us to stick out our chests and take all the credit, I’m afraid it just wouldn’t be true. Sure, we’ve tweaked the techniques here and there, and continue to do so, and our characters and scenes are always specially developed for our clients, but in terms of techniques, what we use is a combination of tools that were developed a long time ago, principally by two pioneers much cleverer than we.

One of them is a name you may well recognise – the German playwright Bertolt Brecht. Sound familiar? If not, you’ll definitely know one of his best-known little gems, for he wrote the story and lyrics to the lounge bar classic Mack The Knife. Brecht was active in pre-WWII Germany and was bitterly opposed to the rise of fascism – so began to use his theatrical skills to help raise awareness of what his nation was sliding towards.

Brecht developed an array of new theatrical techniques that helped revolutionise the way western theatre works at ground level. One of these involved the actor stepping outside their character and encouraging the audience to directly challenge their character’s motivation for acting in a certain way. Anyone who has seen us in action will surely recognise this basic but highly effective tool. It’s essentially how we engage people in the room so quickly.

The other pioneer in this equation is the Brazilian dramatist and political activist Augusto Boal. His name may not be as immediately familiar to you. If so, you have a very good excuse for this, because Boal spent a good deal of time imprisoned by the oppressive regime of his homeland. You see, what he did from the middle of the 20th century onwards was stage theatrical events on the streets which not only directly challenged the government’s conduct, but also gave the watching audiences the power to decide the outcome of what they were watching. Again, if you’ve ever wondered where the idea came from for letting our audiences guide our re-run, look no further than Mr Boal. In truth, all he actually did was subvert a technique 2,000 years old. Think Roman Emperors and the thumb up/down to decide outcomes for various unfortunates. There really is nothing new out there! 

However, unlike Boal, we are rewarded with applause, rather than losing our liberty – and of course the audience come away with their views challenged and changed. Oh yes, these guys knew their stuff!

Lastly we must give a tip of the hat to two gentlemen who thirty odd years ago spotted these and a variety of other techniques and thought of using them to improve the working lives and safety of ordinary people. Step forward Geoff Davies and Roger Hancock, a pair of retired educationalists who had seen at first-hand the power of drama to develop the confidence and social skills of children and young people. They thought, “Well if this works with children, why can’t we do the same with adults?”

Geoff and Roger retired for the second time many years ago now, but Shaun Curry my business partner and I were lucky enough to work alongside both of them. Not long after they retired, Shaun and I ended up as business partners…..and the rest, as they say, is history.

As the pair of us grow older and develop our grey hair and paunches, we now have our brilliant team of facilitator/actors who see more of ‘the road’ than we do and use the very same techniques to deliver change wherever 2macs goes. And the beat goes on …