The session aims to practically demonstrate an arts-based technique called 'Theatre of the Oppressed' followed by a sharing circle highlighting health workers' experiences utilizing theatre for community outreach. Theatre of the Oppressed (TO) is a means to give a voice to those who are not usually heard. It transforms the traditional monologue between actors on a stage into a dialogue with the usual passive audience members (spect-actors) to help them actively deal with oppression in their real lives and start a conversation.
Mehmood Bhatti is a public health professional and a theatre artist with 25 years of experience in curating arts-based interventions for social change. Mehmood currently leads the Theatre Team at IRD Pakistan, which specifically works on mental health awareness across communities in Karachi. He not only trains the community health workers in theatrical outreach but also helps run a theatre company at IRD comprised of people with lived experiences of psychosis.
