Kachahari Performances in Nepal:TowardsLiberation, Social Empowerment, Conflict Resolution and Therapy

Abstract

Thisresearchstudies the Kachahari performancewhich is the Nepali adaptationof Augusto Boal’s Forum Theatre. Unlike traditional forms of performances,it empowers the audience community to define their roles in analyzing the socio-economic conditions of their own as a fate maker of their own,who deserve to be called the director and actor of their own life and problems. Thus, this thesis studies few representative Kachahari Performances made by Aarohah Gurukul, Kathmandu and Shilpee Theatre.IttakesKachahari performances as the form of social avant-garde in resolving the socio-cultural issues of communities and relies heavily on Augusto Boal’s concept of Theatre oftheOppressed,Forum Theatre and his discursive theory of Spect-actor that radically deconstruct the traditional notion of artists and directors as the creators of the meanings.The functionality of the theatre is no longer in doubt, as many people have come to realize the potency of the theatre in development. It has the power to influence thought and opinion, and can serve as a popular and effective means of political propagation, economic empowerment and culture diffusion. This research tries to establish the fact that the nature of theatre being advocated, if explored to its fullness can create the awareness that conflict is antithetical to societal progress and development, by helping the people to understand issues through metaphoric communication and providing a communal experience, which relates the individual to groups, and the groups to the forces controlling the society.