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from lower economic backgrounds, currently migrants and refugees. The Houses 
of Parliament choose their descriptive language carefully, just think of the different 
reactions from “migrants” to “refugees”. They manipulate the public’s perception 
of migrants for their own economic and political gain. The Migrants Rights Network 
expand on this eloquently, describing how a politician’s use of the word “illegal” 
manipulates the public into believing they’re “undeserving of rights’” (Migrants 
Rights Network, 2026). However Verbatim groups can use this very language in 
their favour, such as productions like Verbatim show, Penetrating Europe or  
Migrants have Talent. Activist theatre group Molodyi Teatr is a Ukrainian-British 
group which focuses on bringing marginalised voices to stage through Verbatim  
(Molodyi Teatr London 2017). First performed at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 
2016 it told stories from real life interviews, such as travelling over the border in 
coffins to fridges. They state: “we’ll give you, the Great British Public, the chance to 
vote on which of our plucky migrants gets to stay and which ones get sent home” 
(Molodyi Teatr London, 2017). This use of verbatim is “détourning” something 
known to the British public, such as talent shows. This slapstick humour and  
détournement allows the British public to question their views.  
The humour and slapstick used in Penetrating Europe or Migrants have Talent, is 
one of the many elements of mischief activist groups should rely on. In Tactical 
Performance: serious Play and Social movements, Larry Bogad goes into detail on 
the power of clowning and humour for activists with discussions of the “serious 
play” and techniques such as “yes and” as a tool to oppose authority. An example 
of an activist group who uses clowning as a tactic in protests is CIRCA.  
Clandestine Insurgent Rebel Clown Amy are a group of activists, performers and 
clowns who came together to ridicule authority. Bogad was part of this group and 
talks about his first-hand experience. In Edinburgh, 2005, they gathered to protest 
communities going through economic exploitation. Bogad states: “We were armed 
with feather dusters, helmeted with cylinders and motivated by a clownish call for 
action” (Bogad, L.2016). This directly ridicules the militant forces they were going 
up against; they choose nonviolent humour to oppose the violence of oppressive 
authority. Bogad talks specifically of a clown called Trevelyan who was told to pull 
up his trousers by the police and exerted himself in leaping to “attempt” to put 
them on, defying authority through the humour, leaving the police with no 
 response, therefore breaking the hegemonic spectacle. 
Over all, Verbatim focuses on the weight of “truth” to reverse misinformation of 
marginalised groups in society, who are, commonly results of economic and politi-
cal exploitation. Whereas, clowning uses mockery and slapstick to hold ridicule to 
authority, to break down the systems we live in. Both forms have their limitations; 
however, I believe they valiantly attempt to bring attention, and rehumanisation 
within our society. If our politicians want to distract us with “Bread and Circuses”, 
we must reject their commodification of human rights and privatisation of truth, 
even if it takes our own “Circus” to do so.  

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