ENACTING “REAL PEOPLE’S” EXPERIENCES OF WAR
ENACTING “REAL PEOPLE’S” EXPERIENCES OF WAR

Summary/Abstract: This article examines the role of autobiographical narratives in documentary theatre about war, focusing on the 2023 production Exodus directed by Mikheil Charkviani. Exodus is performed by individuals directly affected by war and is situated within the broader context of the Theatre of the Real, which foregrounds non-professional actors as both artistic medium and material and pursues an aesthetic of authenticity. The study uses biographical narrative interviews to explore participants’ motivations for sharing their war experiences on stage. It applies a hermeneutic analysis of Exodus to examine the work’s formal and aesthetic qualities. In addition, it investigates the connections between participants’ experiences, including the rehearsal process and the context of creation, and the formal and aesthetic elements of the play. The findings show that participants are mainly motivated by a sense of moral responsibility and a wish to raise awareness of the realities of war, which is also reflected in the formal and aesthetic direction of Exodus.

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