Annene Pretorius is a Theatre of the Oppressed practitioner, trained as TO facilitator (or Joker in the language of TO) with Mark Weinblatt of the Mandala Center for Change, Washington. She has extensive experience in social development through applied theatre.
Annene’s philosophy is that living in a society means changing it – it depends what you see when you go to the theatre. “We are all theatre”
Theatre of the Oppressed (T.O.) is a form of popular community based education that uses theater as a tool for transformation. Originally developed out of Boal’s work with peasant and worker populations, it is now used all over the world for social and political activism, conflict resolution, community building, therapy, and government legislation. The Theatre of the Oppressed is of, about, by and for the Oppressed.
Some of Annene’s successful programmes include:
- Co-ordinator UNICEF Child Friendly Schools in Namakwaland
- Inter-active workshops and public dialogue at Saartjie Baartman Centre for abused women and children
- New Endings at Hawequa Youth Correctional Facility in Wellington
- Training and management of Agulhas Youth Theare group
- Forum theatre productions at 28 schools in the Overberg district, reaching over 800 learners of primary phase
- Director of Flower Valley Conservation Trust Arts programme
- Various Biodiversity conservation programmes at Sandberg Fynbos reserve in the Agulhas plain
- Quality Education workshop conference as Steinkofp Secondary school