The Arts & Society strand will be introduced Natalie Melton, commercial director, Arts & Business.
In the seventies and eighties British political theatre was a byword for uncompromising attacks on the Thatcher regime, capitalism, sexism and homophobia; it preached radical social change and revolution. With the fall of the Berlin Wall, the collapse of Communism, the defeat of the Conservatives, the rise of New Labour, 9/11 and the subsequent War on Terror, where does political theatre now stand?
Is political theatre the snarling political animal it once was, or has the beast been tamed? Is a fresh injection of politics needed to enliven British theatre, or might political theatre serve to enliven politics?
A selection of play extracts will be acted and directed by Tamsin Aitken and Jon Spooner (founder and artistic director, Unlimited Theatre) to illuminate the development of, and relationship between, theatre and politics.
 | Chris Jury artistic director, Public Domain theatre company |
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 | Andrew Haydon commissioning editor, theatre, Culture Wars; co-editor, TheatreVoice.com |
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 | Patrick Marmion writer and critic; convenor, Soap Box debating forum |
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| Chair: | |
 | Dolan Cummings associate fellow, Institute of Ideas; editor, Culture Wars; editor, Debating Humanism; co-founder, Manifesto Club |
| Sarah Boyes freelance writer and editor; assistant editor, Culture Wars; editor, Battles in Print 2010 | |
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 | recommended by spiked |
