We Might Be Right: A Libertarian Voice in the Theater

Augusto Boal says in The Rainbow of Desire that theater is an inherently human vocation. It’s something we all are, but something “some of us also do.” What I find so compelling about this distinction is Boal’s emphasis on what theater can make possible for an individual person. Theater is like a mirror, it’s dichotomizing. We can act as ourself, and we can see ourselves acting. We can have past, present, and even future versions of ourselves on stage—and reflect on what this means. As someone who also does theater, this also means that I’m not just focused on what theater can be for me—asserting my own individual rights, exercising my freedoms of speech and assembly—but what it can be for other people.

Ideally at least, it means that my work can empower others, providing a space for each person to ask, “What if I acted as the author of my own life? What if my rights and freedoms meant something to me? What if I accepted the primary responsibility for my life? What if the power of choice became a priority of citizens?”

Given that on some issues I toe a conservative line, I’ve encountered some people who are surprised at my use of “progressive” pedagogies like Augusto Boal and Paulo Freire. So before I go any further, let me say again that a conservative voice in the theater is not necessarily the one that people expect to hear. But more important, there really isn’t a conflict of ideology. I’m all for theater that scrutinizes social issues and generates what Freire called “concientização” or “raising of a critical consciousness.” To a libertarian mind, that kind of consciousness is absolutely necessary if we are going to be vigilant about protecting the rights and liberties of every person. At the same time, protecting and advocating for individual rights also means being wary of government interventions, including government subsidies. As the title of an article by Lauren Galik aptly put it, “If Government Subsidizes Art, It Will Always Be Censored.”