Image Theatre uses the human body as a place for the expressive representation of emo‐ tions, ideas and relationships (Alkistis 2008: 59). This process aims at the personal and collective exploration of a topic, penetrating personal stories that we have created of our social environment and ourselves. It helps to reveal deeper concerns. The resulting images can be compared, interpreted, enlivened and enriched by gestures, objects, sounds and short phrases. This technique allows the creation of a ‘theatre community’ with a ‘common language’ (Govas & Zoniou 2011: 14). “Words express something common to everyone and at the same time something personal for each individual… Image is one way of mak‐ ing everyone understand the same thing …. Words sometimes hide more things that they reveal. Images can hide things too, but if you combine images and words then you have a deeper understanding of what people feel and what they want to say” (Boal 1998: 2). During the forum theatre workshop we included exercises such as: the sculptor and the sculpture; illustrating an issue with my body; illustrating an issue with the bodies of others; still images; dynamic images; multiple images of oppression; and group images (Boal 1992, 174-217). Once the images were constructed, we proceeded to objective, general descrip‐ tion and observation of details by the audience, and then to interpretation: who are we, where are we, what are we doing? The theoretical analysis that follows takes into account the interpretations of both the spectators and the people who created the images. The daily life of African women in Greek society is represented by images. Images can be realistic, allegorical, surreal, symbolic or metaphorical, but true, as the sculptor-protago‐ nist felt them. The images that arose during the workshop briefly highlighted the daily life of women in the field of work (illegal status, labour exploitation, insecurity, intimidation), their contact with natives, some institutional issues that migrants face, paperwork, issues of everyday life, and social oppression.
The body as a product of power relations or “Be careful, the wood is from Africa’!” Power starts from each tiny activity of the body, in each institution of the political body (Foucault 1989). The French thinker approached the body as a construction of the dis‐ courses of power in each historical period.
An African woman works as a house cleaner. The lady of the house has made her clean the wooden floor by hand with a piece of cloth rather than a mop. While the African woman is cleaning the floor, the lady of the house says, “Be careful, the wood is from Africa!”
This image was particularly striking to the participants. Ira, a Greek participant, remarked:
“Wood comes from Africa, having been treated with care and having been beautifully packed. Lauretta, who also comes from Africa, doesn’t matter. This image is funny, but unacceptable.” 62