Documents 

The central research question is based on a tension between ideology and reality. Circus in Ethiopia for Youth and Social Development (CIE), aspires to play a role in promoting socio-economic change?. The premise that performance stimulates social transformation is the ideological basis of the "theatre for development" movement. The founding theoretician, Augusto Boal, explicitly articulates the relationship between politics and performance and proposed a new form of "liberation theatre" to act as a rehearsal for the "revolution".Supporters of such theatrical practise value popular performance as capable of stimulating social change through both the cohesive dimension of the creative process and its communicative capacity. Performance for social transformation is thus examined in both theoretical terms and in practise exemplified during "liberation" conflict in Ethiopia and analysed in detail through examples of contemporary circus performance. The central research question of this thesis is : Does circus performance in Ethiopia facilitate individual and social transformation? Secondary questions include : Has the history of political struggle been reflected through performance in Ethiopia ? Is circus performance being used as a tool for domestication? In what ways has international interest affected circuses at the local level? Are there tensions between artists individual ambitions and their social responsibility? How do specific performances communicate community issues? How is diversity and investment shaping the next generation of Ethiopian artists?