Before you Begin
- Communication and Purpose: Reflect on the reason for using participatory theatre. This method is particularly effective for exploring complexity, surfacing tensions, and engaging people not only intellectually but viscerally and relationally. It may not always produce clear policy outputs or immediate actions, but it can cultivate the conditions for deeper engagement and future collaboration.
- Ethical Concerns: Participants should be clearly informed about the nature of participatory theatre. It is important to explain that participation is voluntary, and individuals can choose how actively they engage, whether by stepping into roles, contributing ideas, or simply observing. Consent should be treated as an ongoing process, not a one-off agreement, with participants given opportunities to pause, withdraw, or opt out at any point.
- Subject Matter: Discussions about biodiversity loss and environmental change can evoke anxiety and strong emotions. It is important to manage and acknowledge these responses within the method. Facilitators can support participants by offering clear, achievable steps they can take, or advocate for, to promote more biodiversity-conscious decisions in their lives. Additional advice on facilitating these conversations can be found at Education Reboot, Natural Resources Defence Council, and Force of Nature
- Checklist: Do you have the skills, resources, equipment and time to dedicate to this method? – If not, it might be worth considering a different method instead, such as Photovoice.
In this video Eszter Kelemen highlights important considerations for using Participatory Theatre:
Working with a Group
Participatory theatre works best with a group that already has some familiarity or shared experience, such as a class of school children or an existing Learning Community. If you are recruiting a new group, consider how trust and a shared purpose will be built, and account for the following in your recruitment strategy:
- Accommodate - Participatory theatre can be time and energy intensive, even when participants are given flexibility in how much they wish to contribute; ensure there are options for allowing levels and ways of participation.
- Show Appreciation – Cover expenses such as travel and provide refreshments. If permitted within your project’s ethical guidelines, offer financial payments or token in-kind gifts to participants by way of acknowledgement of their time and contribution. If direct payments are not possible, consider alternative forms of recognition such as free access to training, workshops, or other events. This signals respect and values people’s contributions.
- Partner – Collaborate with trusted community groups. Think about your network, who could benefit from this training, and how?
- Accessible – Address language, digital literacy, and technical support needs, and offer childcare options during the sessions.
- Be Proactive – Be present in the group you wish to work with. Build relationships through face-to-face conversations, attend local events, and spend time understanding the context. Place invitations in spaces where people already gather, such as schools, libraries, community centres, or local cafes, and frame the invitation as an opportunity for creative collaboration, not just attendance.
In this video Eszter Kelemen offers tips on designing a play in collaboration with a theatre company:
Roles and Responsibilities
The Actors and Facilitators
Facilitators are responsible for ensuring the following:
- Building group trust and responding with care to the emotions experienced by participants
- Being attentive to how power and privilege shape participation and remaining flexible in their approach to ensure the process is inclusive and supportive
- Enabling rather than directing the process; allowing participants to shape the narrative and meaning of the performance
- Co-creating group agreements that set expectations around listening, speaking, confidentiality, and mutual respect
- Remaining aware of different comfort levels and ways of participating – some may prefer observing, others may engage physically or verbally
- Responding to emerging dynamics, such as conflict or distress, with empathy and clear boundaries
- Maintaining an ethical, process-oriented mindset rather than pushing for a polished final product and secure informed consent
Theatre Group or Artistic Collaborators
If working with a professional theatre company or creative practitioner, they will often take the lead in developing the story or scenario, designing interactive elements, and facilitating performance. Their role is not to 'perform at' the group, but to hold space for participation and co-creation. In the PLANET4B project, for example, drama teachers from the Káva Theatre Group developed and facilitated a participatory play while supporting students to intervene and influence the storyline.
Artistic collaborators should:
- Bring experience in interactive and socially engaged theatre
- Collaborate with facilitators and participants to ensure the story is relevant and accessible
- Avoid imposing interpretation, instead creating open frameworks for shared meaning-making
- Balance structure with flexibility, allowing the process to evolve in response to the group
Tips for working with a theatre company:
- Clarify expectations, including the level of participant involvement, the purpose of the session, and any desired outcomes.
- Review examples of previous participatory or socially engaged work to understand the group’s approach and experience.
- Discuss target age group, socio-cultural background, and any other aspects of intersectionality that might influence how the play is experienced and/or received. Ensure that necessary adaptations are agreed, such as a shorter timeframe, simplified language, or other adjustments to support accessibility.
- Agree how the chosen theme will be embedded into the session. This might involve adapting an existing format or developing a new story together from scratch. Be clear about the social context, participants’ backgrounds, and the learning or reflection outcomes you wish to support. Some groups may bring established performance techniques, while others may facilitate co-creation more flexibly.
Experts:
If the aim is to create participatory theatre about biodiversity loss it can be valuable to include scientific experts, for example from the natural sciences. Experts provide a solid understanding of the natural scientific context, as well as explaining the complexity of social-natural interactions. This expertise is crucial for the theatre group to create a realistic and scientifically sound situation. In the PLANET4B education case study (Hungary), WWF Hungary also contributed to creating the Blindspot performance.
Participants:
Participants should be invited to engage in ways that feel right for them, not everyone needs to be on the stage and roles can shift over the course of the session, from director, performer etc. Changing roles part way through, may help develop a broader experience for the participants.
Participants should be encouraged to:
- Bring their own perspectives, experiences, and insights into the process
- Participate in group agreements and help hold the space respectfully
- Explore different roles, either as characters, or in directing the play
- Reflect on the experience and its relevance to their own lives, communities and/ or places of work
- Support each other through care, listening, and solidarity
In this video Eszter Kelemen describes how participants were invited to contribute to the play:
Observers:
Observers are not essential but can offer valuable insights. Teachers, facilitators, or researchers can be invited to observe sessions without participating.
In the PLANET4B project, the Blindspot performance was delivered in school classes where teachers often observed. Their presence helped them notice students’ frustrations, group dynamics, and individual strengths, supporting later reflection and action. Teachers reported that observing the sessions deepened their understanding of internal class relationships. Researchers also acted as observers, identifying moments of doubt, resistance, and signs of transformation during the play.
Tips for Involving Observers:
- Brief observers to remain passive and unobtrusive.
- Encourage them to note shifts in group behaviour and critical moments.
- Create opportunities to discuss observations after the session.
In this video Eszter Kelemen describes how the play was co-created with a theatre company and explained to participants:
