Chris Johnston (1952-2017) was a writer, performer, director,
teacher, and workshop facilitator who championed work in
community-based theatre and improvisation. His work with Insight
Arts Trust (1988-98) and then Rideout (1999-2016) pioneered a range
of theatre and arts-based strategies for working with prisoners and
those on probation. His experiments with ensemble work were
realised in two companies, ESP and Fluxx. Particularly with Fluxx
he developed Citizen Theatre - improvised performances that
explored issues of concern to local communities. A further company,
Livestock, was established in Brighton with a focus on arts and
education.
He was a visiting lecturer at the University of Warwick between
1998 and 2003, and between 2003 and 2006 he was an AHRC Fellow in
Creative & Performing Arts. He was awarded a Butler Trust Award in
2005 for his work in the Prison Service and made a Companion of
LIPA in 2011. His writings for Nick Hern Books include House of
Games (2006, first published by Routledge in 1998), The
Improvisation Game (2006) and Drama Games for Those Who Like to Say
No (2010).
'essential reading... a source of inspiration and a great toolbook
for budding devised theatre makers'
*Total Theatre Magazine*
'a vital book for everyone who wishes to engage seriously with
drama improvisation – it's changed my way of thinking'
*ReviewsGate.com*
'offers a wealth of possibilities and pieces of good advice...
valuable for beginners and experienced improvisers, as well as for
teachers'
*Contemporary Theatre Review*
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