"Legislative Theatre" is the latest and most remarkable stage in the unique Augusto Boal project. It is an attempt to use theatre in a political context to create a truer form of democracy--a method to engage the populace. It is an extraordinary experiment in the potential of theatre to effect social change. At the heart of Boal's method of Forum Theatre--which is already used in diverse contexts--is the dual meaning of the verb "to act": to perform and take action. In "Legislative Theatre" he takes one stage further his concept of the "spect-actor," the spectator who intervenes in an unresolved scenario on stage to try and break a depicted cycle of oppression. As a politician in his native Rio de Janeiro, Boal used Forum Theatre to involve the local populace in generating relevant legislation and social change. The book includes a full explanation of the genesis and principles of legislative theatre, and a description of the process in operation in Rio. Also included are Boal's essays, speeches and lectures on Popular Theatre, Paolo Freire, cultural activism, the point of playwrighting, and much else besides.

Part 1 The Legislative Theatre Book; Prologue: Monologue and dialogue; Chapter 1 History; Chapter 2 The proposition; Chapter 3 The context; Chapter 4 The structure; Chapter 5 A compact course on playwriting and theatre arts; Chapter 6 The show and the community; Chapter 7 Laws promulgated during the mandate; Appendices; Part 2 The 'No-one Here is an Ass!' Book; Prologue 'No-one here is an ass!'; Chapter 8 1 Paulo Freire, my last father; Chapter 9 2 Clementina's turn; Chapter 10 3 Saudades for the chicken thieves of yesteryear; Chapter 11 4 Elizete; Chapter 12 5 The Devil as muse of inspiration; Chapter 13 6 Resignation; Chapter 14 7 Memory and the torture chamber; Chapter 15 8 One hideous crime hides the hideousness of another; Chapter 16 9 The Devil and the canny man; Chapter 17 10 'Human rights' are human; Chapter 18 11 Romeo and Juliet; Chapter 19 12 The suicide of the wind; Chapter 20 13 The laws of the market, the law of the lion; Chapter 21 14 The show of the dream and the dream as show; Chapter 22 15 Family; Part 3 Categories of Popular Theatre; Prologue; Chapter 23 1 The first category of popular theatre By the people and for the people; Chapter 24 2 The second category of popular theatre; Chapter 25 3 The third category of popular theatre; Chapter 26 4 The fourth category of popular theatre; Afterword: The Metamorphoses of the Devil; The individual and the twenty-first century;