Theatre and Schools: Validations, Critiques and the Legacy of the Sixties

Abstract

This paper has been organized into three sections. The first synthesizes aspects of contemporary theatre practices in schools (especially in Italy) since the 1960s, highlighting some critical aspects common to different theoretical and methodological approaches. The second section focuses on community tensions, in particular on the hopes and anxieties of new generations. The third section aims at evaluating the underestimated potential of theatre practices in building communicative bridges between schools and the outside world, in the life of the community, thus fostering creative processes of social identity and renewal.