ABSTRACT
Some theatre is directly, explicitly designed to speak to government policy. This theatre frequently directly stages social problems and often makes a very clear case for solutions. The basic, repeated sentiment is that the content of political theatre is only a portion of theatre's political force. At varying periods, the theatres of the world have each engaged directly with political issues. At times this engagement took the form of parody or satire; at other times, realistic protest theatre restaged the conflicts of the day. Theatre theorists from around the world have expressed similar sentiments about theatrical structure and ideology, for instance:The dramatic heritage available to them has simply proved inadequate. Surreptitious Insurrection provides a theatrical concept that considers the structural interventions theatre might make in the political world. Hence, this chapter addresses world theatre theories that specifically discuss their place in the political spectrum.
