Articles

Staging Violence: Milo Rau, Theatre of War, and Postcolonial Critique

---

Abstract

This article examines the representation of violence in the work of Milo Rau, specifically within the framework of Theatre of War and postcolonial critique. Rau's intercultural performances, often featuring reenactments of historical events and testimonies from marginalized communities, raise questions about the ethics and aesthetics of representing violence across cultural boundaries. One of his recent productions, Antigone in the Amazonas, exemplifies this approach by staging Sophocles' tragedy with indigenous activists and the Landless Movement in Brazil, linking the ancient Greek struggle for justice with contemporary political, environmental, and indigenous rights struggles. This work directly connects to the tradition of Theatre of War, which, from classical Greek tragedies like Euripides' The Trojan Women to contemporary adaptations, explores the impact of conflict and violence on individuals and societies. By situating Rau's work within this lineage, this study investigates how his approach to staging violence contributes to or challenges this tradition. Furthermore, the article analyzes how Rau's work engages with postcolonial critique by examining the power dynamics inherent in representing violence inflicted upon marginalized communities. This analysis draws on key theorists in the fields of Theatre of War, postcolonial studies, and performance studies, including Edith Hall and Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak. Through close readings of selected productions, including Antigone in the Amazonas, The Last Days of the Ceausescus, and The Congo Tribunal, this research explores how Rau navigates the complexities of representing violence in intercultural contexts, as well as analyzes the potential for both re-traumatization and empowerment that exists within Rau's representations of violence.

Keywords: Theatre of War, postcolonial critique, intercultural performances, violence, representation

How to Cite:

Morais, N., (2025) “Staging Violence: Milo Rau, Theatre of War, and Postcolonial Critique”, Documenta 43(1): 3, 77–107. doi: https://doi.org/10.21825/documenta.94094