Pretending to be serious: drama, democracy and the pedagogy of theatre                 

Adrian Skilbeck (University of Winchester)

5.30-7.15 pm

Acting and performance are often used to indicate the perceived emptiness and duplicity of what is said or done. Recently, this has been the accusation levelled at democracy itself, that our politics is all theatre, lacking substance and seriousness. Drama would appear to have little to teach us. Alternatively, we can see drama as offering the possibility of genuine community, through the play of language and our relations with others, including pretending and playfulness, discovering what it means to be serious and whether we can mean what we say. Drama pedagogy thus provides the grounds for testing what it means to become a democratic citizen.

Adrian Skilbeck is a Senior Lecturer in Education at the University of Winchester, after spending many years as a drama teacher. He has recently published articles on both the climate crisis and the crisis in mental health amongst young people, in each case questioning the adequacy of current educational responses. He is the co-editor of a forthcoming volume on Wittgenstein and Education and has recently submitted for publication a monograph on Stanley Cavell and the human voice in education which explores drama pedagogy.

For further inquiries: Yuxin Su, Programme Administrator (yuxin.su.16@ucl.ac.uk).

Please note that this seminar series is run by academics on an entirely voluntary and unpaid basis, on top of existing teaching and other work commitments. While we endeavour to make these events as inclusive and welcoming as possible, we cannot undertake any extra work regarding the presentation, dissemination or planning of the talks or make adjustments to the existing programme.