Theatre for Social Change uses a set of creative practices drawn from the work of Bertolt Brecht, Augusto Boal, New York Theatre of the Oppressed, Rustom Barucha and others, that engage marginalised communities to tell untold stories and to tackle local and international concerns.

The practice is trauma-informed, embodied, and works to ‘make strange’ the rules of everyday life that people may not be aware of, but are used to enact oppression.

Collective Encounters’ central aim is to build power within people and communities who are directly affected by poverty and inequality, and who experience barriers to inclusion.

We recognise that there is deep inequality in our society, that the current economic and political systems are not working for everyone, and that many people feel left out of the decisions that affect their lives. New forms of participation, engagement and organising are needed to centre the voices of those who are most affected by poverty but who currently hold the least power.

We believe that theatre for social change provides a model for re-engaging people as active citizens; empowering individuals to come together in common cause to work collectively and creatively for a more just and equal society.

Collective Encounters has a constantly evolving Theory of Change. This sets out the key processes that we use in our work to provoke change, and identifies the discrete changes we expect our work to achieve as we work towards our main aim of building power in people and communities.

We provoke change via 5 main processes:

1. Exposing the system as a system: we use theatre to de-mystify and ‘make strange’ our current political systems, promoting the idea that change is possible.
2. Provoking a shift in consciousness: we use participatory methods to re-engage people as citizens not consumers; opening up spaces that enable people to use their voice, imagine alternatives, develop new ways of thinking about the world and our place in it. 
3. Capacity building holding actions: we provide positive activities that slow down the negative impacts of our current system, alleviate suffering, build skills and capacities, and empower people to work for radical change. 
4. Creation of Alternatives: we share power with local people, working together to create exciting performances and artworks that explore alternatives to the current system, and broker dialogue with decision makers.
5. Reflexive practice: we continually reflect on our processes, maintain an awareness of our position and biases, question our methods, listen to feedback, and take action to strengthen our inclusivity and our potential to make change.

We measure change at three levels:

Personal: reduced isolation and increased confidence, self-esteem, creative and other skills among the people who take part in our workshops, training sessions, and performances

Social: strengthened communities where differences are celebrated, stereotypes and discrimination are challenged, barriers to participation are removed, solidarity is built between those with direct experience of poverty and inequality, and there is an increased awareness about their experiences amongst the local community and the general public

Political: new networks and structures are established enabling more people to work together for social change; local and national policy is influenced by the people it affects; and there is a greater understanding and application of theatre and arts for social change among artists, activists, researchers and decision makers.

Personal Change

Between April 2024 and March 2025, 2,250 people took part in a project with Collective Encounters.

Among those who attended at least three sessions, 95% reported an increase in their confidence and 95% reported the development of new skills.

Participants identified performing, improvisation, public speaking, creative writing, research skills, listening, and group work among the skills they developed.

79% reported that they had improved their social network and/or made new friends.

An externally commissioned impact report of our Women in Action programme identified that this work “has had a very direct impact on [participants’] lives, for example on their parenting confidence, or their confidence to take on a new role or apply for a job. For some it has enabled and supported their activism in their communities as volunteers in other organisations.”

For more information about the kinds of personal changes experienced by our participants, read this article by Moon Rice.

Social Change

Each year, Collective Encounters’ works with a range of youth, adult and intergenerational groups to raise awareness of and provide a platform for the issues facing people living in Liverpool City Region.

Between 2023 and 2025, we platformed the experiences of new parents, Black mothers, care-experienced young people, women and non-binary people, mental health service users, disabled people, and young migrants, among others.

In addition to the performances and other creative products of those projects, our Social Change Cabaret and Community Chronicles performances brought these varied issues together, promoting solidarity, dialogue and shared understanding among people in struggle.

68% of participants and audience members said they learned something new about the barriers people face in society, while 82% said they felt heard and more able to have a say over the decisions that affect their lives.

Watch: Poem for Granny Marie – raising awareness of ancestral midwifery practice its importance among Black mothers

Political Change

Collective Encounters’ work within the Liverpool City Region has led to the creation of long standing networks and groups that use creative practice to build community capacities and connect people to systems of power. This includes our own Adult Theatre for Social Change group, regular Women in Action group, Black Maternal Health group, Parent-Baby Co-production group, and Arts Adventures for care-experienced young people, as well as regular creative provision at community organisations such as Spider Project, Make It Happen, and St Leonard’s Youth and Community Centre.

Collective Encounters has supported over 70 artists and activists to set up their own arts for social projects.

Our creative approach has been commissioned by researchers and policy makers in public health, children’s and family services, advice services, and mental health research, to engage people with lived experience in co-producing improved services and policies. This has directly led to changes such as:

• Creative achievements and expressions being recognised as part of the care plans for young people in the care of the local authority
• The production of youth-led COVID-19 health messaging, including posters and social media campaigns
• An advice leaflet created by Black mothers for Black mothers, being distributed through Liverpool Women’s Hospital and community hubs
• Perinatal care professionals attending training co-produced with new parents, with 100% of attendees reporting new insights and identifying improvements to their practice
• Recognition by public health that services must listen to and involve marginalised groups in any attempt to improve health equity
• The co-creation of Liverpool City Council’s first Access to Advice policy

In 2025, Collective Encounters’ 21st birthday year, our artists, trustees, and participants are looking back to look forward; celebrating and critically reflecting on the past two decades of theatre for social change in Liverpool City Region in order to imagine the future.

We have been asking people what changes they want to see Collective Encounters contributing to in the next 5 years. Here are some of the responses.