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Acting together: ensemble as a democratic process in art and life

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Neelands, Jonothan. (2009) Acting together: ensemble as a democratic process in art and life. Research in Drama Education: The Journal of Applied Theatre and Performance, Vol.14 (No.2). pp. 173-189. ISSN 1356-9783

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Official URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13569780902868713

Abstract

Traditionally drama in schools has been seen either as a learning medium with a wide range of curricular uses or as a subject in its own right. This paper argues that the importance of drama in schools is in the processes of social and artistic engagement and experiencing of drama rather than in its outcomes. The paper contrasts the pro-social emphasis in the ensemble model of drama with the pro-technical and limited range of learning in subject-based approaches which foreground technical knowledge of periods, plays, styles and genres. The ensemble-based approach is positioned in the context of professional theatre understandings of ensemble artistry and in the context of revolutionary shifts from the pro-technical to the pro-social in educational and cultural policy making in England. Using ideas drawn from McGrath and Castoriadis, the paper claims that the ensemble approach provides young people with a model of democratic living.

Item Type:	Journal Article
Subjects:	L Education > LB Theory and practice of education P Language and Literature > PN Literature (General) > PN2000 Dramatic representation. The Theater
Divisions:	Faculty of Social Sciences > Institute of Education
Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH):	Drama in education -- Great Britain, Theater -- Political aspects, Theater and society, Citizenship -- Study and teaching -- Great Britain, Ensemble theater
Journal or Publication Title:	Research in Drama Education: The Journal of Applied Theatre and Performance
Publisher:	Routledge
ISSN:	1356-9783
Date:	May 2009
Volume:	Vol.14
Number:	No.2
Page Range:	pp. 173-189
Identification Number:	10.1080/13569780902868713
Status:	Peer Reviewed
Access rights to Published version:	Restricted or Subscription Access
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URI:	http://wrap.warwick.ac.uk/id/eprint/2721