Screenwriter Enas Lotfy to lead workshop about “Theatre of the Oppressed”

CAIRO – 20 December 2017: Egyptian screenwriter Enas Lotfy will be leading a workshop about a special theatrical technique called “Theater of the Oppressed” at an arts and culture venue in Masr El Gedida called Wanas.
Thursday’s workshop will take place over a full-day. Lotfy will be introducing the theory and ideas behind Theatre of the Oppressed, then begin creating silent theatrical scenes using interactive tools and materials that will allow the audience to develop full stories through their participation alone.


Theatre of the Oppressed is a theatrical approach that requires the audience to participate in the creative action conducted within a play sharing the performance with the theater performers.

The technique was originally created by Augusto Boal, a Brazilian writer, politician, and theatre practitioner who developed it to motivate people, particularly the working-class and non-bourgeois, and encourage them to become active agents of environment. His methodology was inspired by social issues in Brazil following a long military dictatorship that left Brazilians passive and unmotivated to create social change.


Lotfy is a professional screenwriter who joined the Egyptian production firm Birthmark Films. Her writing was developed into the 2017 Egyptian film “Bashtery Ragel” (Buying A Man) starring the celebrated actors Nelly Karim and Mohamed Mamdouh. She learned about different methods in the acting field including Theatre of the Oppressed and drama therapy.

Lotfy is currently participating in a training that is part of a program “Community Action Methods” (CAM) for drama and arts-based techniques for developing community well-being and health.

Wanas is an arts and culture space in Masr el-Gedida that aims to spread awareness of social issues in Egypt using the arts. It conducts capacity building activities through workshops, seminars, shows and performances, film screenings, and exhibitions.