Augusto+Boal+english

**The oppressed in the stage of life**

The biggest coincidence between Paulo Freire and Augusto Boal it's neither the date of their death nor the political history that both shared and made them dangerous for the military dictatorship, which expelled both of them of the country for years. What brings these two notable Brazilians together the most was not also the countless number of prizes they received for their intellectual activities nor the Nobel Prize nomination.

The biggest resemblance between Freire and Boal is deeply rooted in the conviction they shared and made them struggle for all their lives: the cause of the oppressed.

On the exact day that completed 12 years of Paulo Freire's death (May 2nd) Augusto Boal left us. However, following the example of our greatest educator, the founder of the Theater of the Oppressed left us a legacy of hope. His art was never a mere allegory of life or a meaning in itself. For Boal the Aesthetics of the Oppressed is first of all a tool for social intervention. In one of his last public speeches, in March 2009, receiving the title as UNESCO's theater ambassador, Boal stated that “citizen is not the one who lives in society, but the one that transforms it”. He also said that “we have an obligation to invent another world because we know that another world is possible”.

Even for those close to him and especially in such a painful moment to reflect about Boal's biography is still to celebrate life. Is to insist in a path of change from the starting point of and with the oppressed. Boal was for certain one of those //indispensable// // men //  that Brecht spoke about. The fact that he has already penetrated the land of all continents with so many theater groups throughout the world are the social proof that his art is deeply human and therefore revolutionary. To the relatives, friends and admirers of Augusto Boal we manifest our condolences and express the certainty that his presence will be forever in both the memory as well as in the social practice that are inspired by his life. **Paulo Freire Institute** 