HMN 2026: How Participatory theater helps young people become active citizens

In Estonian schools, social studies classes provide a thorough education on what democracy is and what it means to be a citizen. However, knowledge alone is not enough to foster active citizenship or reduce the differences in civic skills between Estonian- and Russian-speaking young people. A doctoral thesis by Nikolai Kunitsõn, a political scientist at Tallinn University, shows that participatory theater can bridge this gap.

Democracies around the world are currently under pressure from both external and internal sources. To thrive, open societies need active citizens who possess the skills required to participate in democracy. Kunitsõn examined how the development of such citizens could be better supported. This is particularly important for young people attending Russian-language schools, as it helps reduce the differences in democratic knowledge and civic skills between Estonian- and Russian-speaking young people.

“Social studies classes in Estonian schools are overloaded with factual knowledge, while the teaching of skills takes a back seat,” explains the political scientist. “Teachers have a great deal of freedom, but also a great deal of responsibility, which exacerbates inequality in Russian-language schools.”

When it comes to shaping young people into active citizens, acquiring theoretical knowledge in school classes is not enough. The skills that an active citizen needs daily—debating, resolving differences of opinion and taking a stand—must also be practiced. As a solution, Kunitsõn proposes a participatory theater method called forum theater, where young people can learn the necessary new skills in a playful way.

Participatory theater brings real-life problems to the stage

In forum theater, participants act out a real-life problem. The same story is then repeated, but this time any member of the audience can shout “stop,” come up onstage, take the place of a character and try to resolve the situation differently. Essentially, this means that anyone can change the course of the performance and propose their own solution. “Forum theater allows young people to look at a situation from the sidelines and then try to see how things could be done differently,” Kunitsõn explains.

Over nine months, Kunitsõn conducted workshops and performances with Russian speakers ages 14 to 21, during which the young people created stories based on their own experiences and presented them to their peers. The changes were noticeable: young people began to see situations from multiple perspectives, notice others’ feelings, solve problems more creatively and become more self-confident in the process. This was true even for topics involving ingrained thought patterns.

A solution to reduce division

Until now, there has been a theoretical understanding that it is possible to challenge entrenched beliefs in schools, but there has been no clear and precise mechanism for doing so. Kunitsõn demonstrates that participatory theater helps change people’s deeply ingrained patterns of thought and behavior—things that are taken for granted and seem “normal.” This makes it possible to reduce the differences in democratic knowledge and civic skills between Estonian- and Russian-speaking young people.

This is an important finding, as the development of civic skills affects the cohesion of Estonian society as a whole. “Simply switching schools to Estonian-language teaching will neither foster active citizens nor bridge the divide between young people,” Kunitsõn says. “Young people need to have real opportunities to practice civic skills, and participatory theater is a surprisingly good way to do that.”

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