Can community performance make change?

I feel as though this question has been a debate among theatre scholars and theatre goers for centuries. On one side there are those who say no, that theatre is merely a form of entertainment. On the other side, there are those who say YES- theatre can be a powerful agent for social and political change.

Proponents- Yes

Opponents- No

Theatre can be an outlet for creating both social and political change. Some even vouch to say that all theatre is political theatre mirroring politics and our current political state. Theatre should encourage audience members to think and to be as engaged in the performance as the actors themselves are. By the actors telling the most truthful version of the story that they can and being seen as an imitation of life, audience members are left with choices. Those choices can challenge the status quo and create positive change. The play does not end after the curtains close.

Theatre is merely a form of entertainment. People attend theatre performances solely to be entertained and not to be forced to think or make choices. After a hard day or week at work, an audience member doesn’t want to think but wants to relax, laugh, and view the spectacle at a distance. The play ends after the curtains close.

I, personally, am a proponent of theatre being an agent for change. For those who are not as familiar with this debate, I will offer an example with The Lysistrata Project.

This project was fueled by the attacks on 9/11 and the war in Afghanistan. Two actors, extremely familiar with the play Lysistrata and its plot of fighting for peace, began the project. Actors and community members came together to fight for the common goal of peace in a time of war. Actors read passages from the play Lysistrata to encourage others to promote peace at all costs. This project is ongoing and has spread across the US and the country. http://www.lysistrataproject.org/aboutus.htm

How can anyone view this project and deny its being theatre advocating change? This project takes a classical piece of drama and places it in the context of modern day to encourage social and political change. This project has become an influential project and has spread on a viral level.

So, I pose this question. Does a performance end with the curtains being drawn or can it go beyond the theatre staying with audience members encouraging them to create change on some micro or even macro level?