Download IPTN_April2016_FINAL_lowres.pdf
Words from the Editor – Simon Floodgate
John Paul Lederach (2005), referencing Kenneth Yasuda on the Japanese Haiku, in his discussion of the art of social change, reflects that the haiku moment, “…happens with the appearance of resonance. Something resonates deeply. It connects. What it connects is the eternity of truth with the immediacy of experience. He calls this “ah-ness,” which I might render in my experience as the “ah-hah” moment, the “I see exactly what you mean.” Lederach (2005, p.68)
In this second edition of the IPTN Journal there are a range of articles and gathering/conference reports that I hope resonate with you, the reader. It has been a privilege for me to read and support the writers of the contributions to this edition. The articles covering the diverse experiences of Nepalese reconciliation (Anne Dirnstorfer), in Norwegian schools (Audun & Børge Kristofferson) and in the South West of England with muslim women asylum seekers and refugees (Kate Glover & Annie Mitchell), yet again remind us of the importance of Playback within the world.
The reports on gatherings in Brazil and Asia along with news on the networks in Germany and the USA and Canada, both inspire and warm the heart in equal measure.
There are several tools to help and inform us as playbackers. Assael Romanelli discusses his Three Dimensional Diamond model drawing upon a range of improvisation theory. In addition, there are reviews and notices of new books on Playback. José Marques writes an in-depth review of Clarice Siewert’s Nossas Historias Em Cena, published in Portuguese and there is endorsement for Elizaveta and Zoya Zagryazhskaya’s new collection of playback chapters which they have now edited in English as well as Russian, Playback Theatre Practice: Selected Articles.
I thank all of the contributors and translators to this edition who have been dedicated to Playback, patient with me, and inspirational in their work and their writing. Somewhere within this rich collection of articles, reviews, notices and reports, I sincerely hope you find many “ah-hah” moments.
The call for the next edition is below but a reminder that you are invited to contact me about possible articles and/or to develop pieces at any time. I will also continue to contact people myself to commission articles. The Journal serves as a conduit through which we can dialogue with each other and make ourselves more robust in our talking about Playback within the wider world.
Simon Floodgate
*Lederach, J (2005). Moral Imagination: The Art and Soul of Building Peace. Cary, NC, USA: Oxford University Press
Note: This is the second edition of the IPTN Journal (Vol 2, no.1). It is numbered this way as it will be the first of two editions in 2016 (see the call for papers for the Summer 2016 edition below). Last year, saw the first IPTN Journal edition and there was only one for the year (Vol 1, no.1).