Paper short abstract:

Using examples from the development of Tiranya Ko Koisani, this paper explains the potential of community theatre to actively dismantle prevailing trends in development interventions within Ethiopia and globally, transcending the Global North and Global South dichotomy.

Paper long abstract:

In 2018, Tesfahun Haddis, a theatre studies lecturer at Mekelle University, entered into a creative collaboration with Olisarali Olibui, a pastoralist and filmmaker who belongs to the Mursi tribe in Southern Ethiopia. The Mursi community's prolonged struggle with the Ethiopian government, characterized by a tumultuous relationship, prompted Olisarali and Tesfahun to devise a unique approach for cultural representation. Tesfahun supported Olisarali to script a political community play – Tiranya Ko Koisani (Playing the Mediator) Their intention was to utilize participatory theatre as an intervention for political engagement, countering the prevailing government centeralized imposition without community involvement.

In Ethiopia, the historical concentration of theatrical productions in the capital, Addis Ababa, marginalized access for the wider population. However, a transformative moment unfolded as the Mursi community crafted a groundbreaking play, challenging the conventional top-down approach prevalent in Ethiopian development and theatre production. Unlike government-sponsored plays serving as propaganda tools, the Mursi play represented a shift from central-to-peripheral influence to a bottom-up dynamic. This departure signalled a break in established barriers, actively challenging development intervention patterns in Ethiopia. The Mursi play stands as an exemplary instance of community theatre, specifically the theatre of the oppressed, actively dismantling prevailing trends in development interventions within Ethiopia and globally, transcending the Global North and Global South dichotomy