Persuading the public: The play as propaganda

Persuading the public: The play as propaganda

The play as propaganda has a long history. From the regime-affirming productions of Hieron, tyrant King of Syracuse, to Lucy Prebble’s play The Effect, we can understand that theatre has consistently been used throughout history to promote ideologies and propound beliefs. In the case of Hieron, he was attempting to promote cultural unity over conquered peoples. Prebble, somewhat less tyrannically, aimed to provoke thought over medical ethics. Ho…