In traditional theater forms, the roles of performer and audience are

Question

In traditional theater forms, the roles of performer and audience are completely separate, so that performance space can be said to encompass an actors’ sphere and a spectators’ sphere. Even when performers move out into the audience or when there is scripted audience interaction, spectators do not become performers. Finally, while stories may open up the imagination or excite audiences, according to Augusto Boal, they discourage political action by providing catharsis. The passive spectator follows the play’s emotional arc and, once the action concludes, finds the issue closed. Boal reminds us that our theater etiquette creates a kind of culture of apathy where individuals do not act communally, despite shared space, and remain distanced from art.

Workshop theater, such as Boal’s Image Theatre and Forum Theatre, is a response to that. In the workshop form, performance space is created for a select group of people, but the performers’ sphere and the audience’s sphere are collapsed: everyone is at once theater maker and witness. In Image Theatre, participants will come up with a theme or issue and arrange themselves into a tableau that depicts what that issue looks like in society today, versus what
the ideal situation would be. They then try to transition from the current image to the ideal image in a way that seems plausible to all the participants. Forum Theatre, on the other hand, creates a narrative skit depicting a certain problem. After the actors have gone through the action of the play once, a facilitator, known as the joker (like the one in a pack of cards), encourages those who have watched the story to watch it again and to stop it at any time to take the place of the protagonist. The aim is to find a solution to the problem, realizing along the way all of the obstacles involved. In Forum Theatre, just as in Image Theatre, there is not always a solution. The main goal of this form, then, is to engage in the action, to reflect, and to understand particular issues as being part of a larger picture, thus using art to re-cast what seem like private troubles in a public, political light.

The main reason Boal developed these workshop styles was to grant audiences  agency  so that they may create ways to free themselves of oppression. Because he found theater audiences to be locked into a passive role—just like he found the oppressed coerced into a subservient role in relation to their oppressors—he created the “spect-actor,” or someone who simultaneously witnesses and creates theater.    1 
 1. The second paragraph of the passage serves to

(A) elaborate on the topic of the first paragraph
(B) provide a rationale for an artistic endeavor
(C) discuss an artistic answer to a passive culture
(D) explain the theater’s lack of appeal
(E) evaluate two contrasting styles of theater

2  
 2. The author uses the word “agency” ( Highlighted ) to mean

(A) profit
(B) organization
(C) publicity
(D) power
(E) hegemony

3  
 3. Which of the following would Boal consider a “spect-actor”?

(A) A person who engages in political action
(B) An audience member who finds catharsis in a play
(C) Any person placed in a subservient role
(D) Any actor
(E) A participant in an Image workshop

4  
 4. According to Boal, all of the following are disadvantages of traditional theater forms EXCEPT:

(A) Such productions prevent the actors from going into the audience.
(B) Such productions provide catharsis.
(C) Such productions discourage communal activity.
(D) Such productions obstruct political change.
(E) Such productions distance the audience from the art.

5  
 5. All of the following would be characteristic of a Forum workshop EXCEPT:

(A) Productions begin with a narrative script.
(B) Different people often play the protagonist.
(C) Some performances do not achieve catharsis.
(D) Participants arrange themselves into a tableau.
(E) Performances are guided by a mediator.

Sajjad1994 · Answer

OE

1. The second paragraph of the passage serves to

The first sentence of this paragraph defines Boal’s work as a response to a culture of apathy. This matches   choice (C).

Choice (A)  is incorrect—the paragraph describes a response, not an elaboration.

Choice (B)  is incorrect because it is not until the last paragraph that the author provides a rationale for the two theatres.

Choice (D)  is beyond the scope of the passage.

Choice (E)  is incorrect because there is no evaluation. 
 
  Answer: C

Sajjad1994 · Answer

OE

2. The author uses the word “agency” (     Highlighted     ) to mean

This is essentially a vocabulary question.  “Power”  is one meaning of  “agency,”  and this is the only meaning that makes sense in the context of creating  “ways to free themselves.”  Thus,  choice (D)  is correct.

Choices (A)  and  (B)  are other meanings of  “agency”  that do not fit the context of the passage.
 
  Choice (C)  might be related to  “agent,”  but it has no relationship to  “agency”  or the passage here.

Choice (E)  is incorrect as it implies domination over others. 
  
  Answer: D

Sajjad1994 · Answer

OE

3. Which of the following would Boal consider a “spect-actor”?

The last paragraph defines a  “spect-actor”  as  “someone who simultaneously witnesses and creates theater.”  In the second paragraph, the passage states that at Image events  “everyone is at once theater maker and witness.”  Thus,  (E)  is the correct choice.

Choice (A)  does not mention theater, so it is incorrect. As for  choice (B) , Boal specifically says that catharsis keeps people passive (also, the audience member is not acting, which is crucial to being a “spect-actor”).

Choice (C)  is incorrect and, to an extent, backwards—the passage said that Boal found that position analogous to that of a passive audience.

Choice (D)  is too broad, given the first paragraph about traditional theater. 
  
  Answer: E

Sajjad1994 · Answer

OE

4. According to Boal, all of the following are disadvantages of traditional theater forms EXCEPT:

At the end of the first paragraph, the author paraphrases Boal:  “theater etiquette creates a kind of culture of apathy where individuals do not act
communally ... and remain distanced from art.”  This supports choice  (A) .
 
  Choices (C)  and  (E)  can be eliminated.  Choices (B)  and  (D)  are wrong because Boal states that traditional theater discourages political action by providing catharsis.

Choice (A)  is correct because Boal states that actors do go into the audience in traditional theater, so they are not prevented from doing so. 
  
  Answer: A

Sajjad1994 · Answer

OE

5. All of the following would be characteristic of a Forum workshop EXCEPT:

This choice is a characteristic of an Image workshop, not a Forum workshop. In the second paragraph, the passage states that Forum workshops begin with a narrative skit,  (A) ; then the facilitator—or mediator,  (E) —encourages spectators to assume the role of the protagonist,  (B) .

Choice (C)  is justified as the paragraph states that performances do not always arrive at a satisfactory solution. Therefore,  (D)  is the correct answer to this Except question. 
  
  Answer: D

In traditional theater forms, the roles of performer and audience are

Prep Toolkit

Top 5 GMAT Debrief Videos

615 to 715 in 15 Days (Ria's Strategies)

More than Quant/Verbal Abilities: Speed vs. Accuracy

745 with Only Self-Prep and GMAT Club

From 555 to 765: 210-point Improvement

Perfect 805 Score Debrief by Julia

My Rewards