Song, Dance, and Revolution: Brechtian theatrical tropes in Alex Mukulu’s 30 Years of Bananas and Asiimwe Deborah Kaawe’s Appointment with gOD
Document Type
Presentation
Location
Hodges 434 / Zoom Room A
Start Date
29-3-2025 12:00 PM
End Date
29-3-2025 12:20 PM
Description
Released approximately twenty years apart, 30 Years of Bananas and Appointment with gOD display a Uganda entangled in vastly different circumstances. The former is preoccupied with the first thirty years following Uganda’s independence, whereas the latter focuses on international relations by way of a United States Visa application. This essay will engage in a comparative analysis of these plays through a Brechtian lens, with a focus on the Epic Narrator, and the representational and didactic uses of the ‘v’ effect as a tool for inciting an audience towards revolutionary fervor, and ultimately, social change. Although these plays were composed 20 years apart, I argue that their construction relies heavily on Brechtian theatrical techniques to drive an audience towards social activism and civil responsibility. I also argue that although revolution is not a term that is transmutable across time and space, the idea that social change is possible, and that social change can begin with rebellion against an oppressive political state, is very much alive in both these plays.
To start, I will provide a summary of the plays, then offer a contextual framework which demonstrates how they are part of a theatre culture that is inherently political. I will then explore Brecht’s political theatre within a critical context, and ‘v’ effect as an important tool for revolutionary movements in political theatre. The final section will analyze how these plays use Brechtian techniques in their own historical contexts, to drive audiences towards social change.
Song, Dance, and Revolution: Brechtian theatrical tropes in Alex Mukulu’s 30 Years of Bananas and Asiimwe Deborah Kaawe’s Appointment with gOD
Hodges 434 / Zoom Room A
Released approximately twenty years apart, 30 Years of Bananas and Appointment with gOD display a Uganda entangled in vastly different circumstances. The former is preoccupied with the first thirty years following Uganda’s independence, whereas the latter focuses on international relations by way of a United States Visa application. This essay will engage in a comparative analysis of these plays through a Brechtian lens, with a focus on the Epic Narrator, and the representational and didactic uses of the ‘v’ effect as a tool for inciting an audience towards revolutionary fervor, and ultimately, social change. Although these plays were composed 20 years apart, I argue that their construction relies heavily on Brechtian theatrical techniques to drive an audience towards social activism and civil responsibility. I also argue that although revolution is not a term that is transmutable across time and space, the idea that social change is possible, and that social change can begin with rebellion against an oppressive political state, is very much alive in both these plays.
To start, I will provide a summary of the plays, then offer a contextual framework which demonstrates how they are part of a theatre culture that is inherently political. I will then explore Brecht’s political theatre within a critical context, and ‘v’ effect as an important tool for revolutionary movements in political theatre. The final section will analyze how these plays use Brechtian techniques in their own historical contexts, to drive audiences towards social change.