The Roles of Theatre and Drama in the Criminal Justice System

Presenter: Hannah Joel − English, Sociology

Faculty Mentor(s): Aryn Bartley, Ce Rosenow

Session: (Virtual) Oral Panel—Read, Speak and Act

Prisons deter the public from engaging in criminal behavior and reform the incarcerated. Despite the goal of deterrence, however, statistics reveal flaws within current U.S. rehabilitation practices. According to a Bureau of Justice Statistics study that followed 404,638 incarcerated individuals upon their release from prison, 67.8% were rearrested within three years of release. 76.6% were rearrested within five years. The alarming recidivism rates suggest that the criminal justice system is failing to properly rehabilitate incarcerated individuals and that they are not given a chance to transform their lives. The criminal justice system is overlooking a critical aspect: the importance of prison education. Theatre and drama programs are examples of prison education that can be highly effective in transforming an incarcerated individual. To analyze the roles these programs play in the criminal justice system, I researched the benefits such programs bring to the lives of incarcerated individuals. Since this is a preliminary study, I relied on the testimonies from incarcerated individuals and articles on prison education programs. These sources demonstrate that theatre and drama programs helped change incarcerated individuals’ lives by developing empathy and reflection on their deviant behavior. Recognizing the role that such programs play in the prison system is crucial in terms of understanding and considering what we can do to mitigate the chances of recidivism in the future.

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