Playback Theatre as a Mental Anchor for Ukrainians during the War
Three years into the war, the empathetic approach of playback theatre is still giving people in Ukraine support
Playback theatre has been established in Ukraine since 2001. Like any other form of art, it helps individuals reflect on significant life events and teaches them to listen deeply to themselves and others. With the onset of the full-scale invasion, playback theatre took on new meanings and, with the support of the international organization forumZFD, has been helping Ukrainians find stability and support during these challenging times.
The lobby of the theatre where the performance takes place is as intriguing as the format of the show itself. Old embroidered shirts suspended from the ceiling, hanging as if on invisible strings, along with homemade decorations. In one corner, there’s a small craft bar offering a choice of red or white wine.
“Dear friends, welcome! Thank you so much for coming! We’ll wait for a few more guests to arrive and start soon!”, the woman who makes the announcement has vibrant dreadlocks and a cheerful, resonant voice. “That’s Nata,” whispers one theatre guest to another.
Nata Vainilovych, the head of the NGO “ART-Playback,” is an actress and the leader of the playback theatre “Na Varti” (“On Guard”). Everyone involved in playback theatre in Ukraine knows her. Like many others, Nata got into this art by chance. In 2009, she was teaching at Kyiv Polytechnic Institute and attended a playback theatre performance as a guest. Eventually, she began attending rehearsals, and playback theatre became an integral part of her life.
Playback theatre creates a special connection between the audience and the performers when personal stories are shared.
What is Playback Theatre?
Playback theatre is a form of improvisational theatre that revolves two main practices: audience members share personal stories in public, and actors immediately enact these stories artistically in specific forms.
Each playback theatre event has a conductor who organizes these practices and guides the entire process from the opening to the closing remarks.
This time, Nata is the conductor, collecting stories from the audience, which her team of actresses then portrays and lives out on stage. She also helps those who share their stories experience them anew, always keeping a few tissues by her side for moments when emotions overflow.
“People share very different stories. Some talk about childhood traumas, betrayal, or health issues that have significantly impacted their lives,” Nata explains. She frequently conducts playback theatre workshops for people with disabilities, the LGBTQ+ community, and the Roma community. After 2014, the first stories about the war and the difficulty of returning to civilian life began to emerge in Ukrainian playback theatre. Since 2022, such stories have become even more widespread.
Building Connections Through Stories
Before the performance begins, Nata asks the audience where they are from. Many different city and town names are said out loud, strangers find connections with other people in the audience from the same place.
“This brings people together. There are so many internally displaced individuals now. People from the same city find each other and start talking about familiar streets, about buildings that no longer exist. Yes, it’s a painful memory, but it also builds a bridge between them,” shares Nata.
As the director of “ART-Playback”, this special form of theatre is an integral part of Nata Vainilovych's life.
There are also displaced women among the actresses playing tonight. They were originally from Kherson, Hola Prystan, Mariupol, and Crimea. All these cities and regions are either occupied by Russian forces or under constant attack from Russian shelling and drones. Each of these women came to the playback theatre after the launch of Russia’s war in Ukraine.
Oleksandra, an actress from the Izmail playback theatre “Grani,” says: “I live through the story, not just act it out. I feel it, and it hurts me just as it does the person who shares it. I believe that through this enactment, we can help the storyteller let go of their story.”
Oleksandra is a mother of five who fled Crimea while still pregnant, moving through several cities before finding her new home in Izmail. “When you help others, you help yourself,” she shares. For Oleksandra, playback is a place where she can be herself without any societal roles.
On stage, she and five other actresses improvise in synergy, bringing the audience’s stories to life. The actors need to know each other well in order to support and respond to each other at the right moments. Even though the performance takes place in the evening, the actresses spent the entire day preparing, emotionally tuning in and adjusting to the environment and new colleagues. This is the first time this particular group performs together. For the performance, they traveled to Kyiv from Izmail and Odesa, each bringing their own background and stories.
Experienced playback actors caution that while playback theatre can help people navigate difficulties, reflect on life situations, and even entire stages of life, it should be approached carefully.
A challenge for audience and actors
“If you lack extensive experience, it can easily overwhelm you. But that’s what training is for. In cases where an actor hears a story that resonates with the one’s own trauma and feels too difficult to perform, they signal to the other actors to take over,” explains Oleksandra. “Playback is about serving, but it’s not about sacrificing oneself. We have to take care of ourselves”, she adds.
Many of the actresses have fled the war and find support in the theatre group.
Other actresses from the Izmail theatre, Tetiana and Kateryna, are also displaced. In their new environment, each sought support to prevent them from falling into despair during these tough times of war. Their journey into playback, like Nata’s, began unexpectedly with an invitation to “just come and watch.”
Kateryna, once a resident of Hola Prystan in the Kherson region that is now occupied, shares her experience: “Through playback, I have returned more to my true self, revealing more of who I am. Due to traumatic experiences, I felt as though I was in a shell that was very hard to break out of. On New Year’s, I wished to work on my body and voice, and two months later, by chance, I found myself in playback. It was destiny.”
Tetiana also reflects on the changes she has experienced through playback theatre: “My eldest daughter came to a performance and told me, ‘Mom, you’re getting better and better each time!’ What greater joy can a mother feel than hearing that from her child?”
In playback theatre, the people in the audience are not just listeners, but are always part of the production themselves.
While playback theatre has a therapeutic effect on both actors and the audience, it is not considered therapy. Playback practitioners see it as an art form that heals, like any other art. Sometimes people feel an intrinsic need for playback, coming to find a community and a sense of belonging. The COVID-19 pandemic also played a significant role in this need.
“People came with issues of isolation and social ‘wildness.’ I remember one case where a girl shared a story about living in complete isolation for months, with no contact at all. Her first socialization was through playback, and afterward, she met someone and went out for pizza. Fantastic! That alone is enough to say that it’s all worth it,” says the head of the NGO “ART-Playback.”
With the beginning of the full-scale war, playback in Ukraine has taken on an even more critical role. Despite having a common enemy, Ukrainians’ experiences vary greatly. Society often feels divided—between those who have suffered loss and those who haven’t, between military personnel and civilians, between those living near the front lines and those further away.
“I don’t have rose-colored glasses; playback won’t reconcile everyone, but it can help us live with these differences and understand each other better,” Nata shares. She mentions that psychologists from the displaced persons center “IAmMariupol” sometimes recommended people try playback theatre to process loss when the pain was no longer acute. The main rule is to do no harm, to avoid touching on something that could further traumatize even more.
Much Needed Support From forumZFD
The art of playback theatre in Ukraine and the NGO “ART-Playback” have been actively supported by forumZFD for six years. Even though working with theatres wasn’t initially part of forumZFD’s focus, the program’s head in Ukraine, Zornitsa Popova-Glozhani, saw the need to support this project. Nata Vainilovych’s passion and belief in the project were fundamental in this decision. Over time, the “ART-Playback” community expanded: Anna Shestakova became the representative in Odesa, and in 2020, forumZFD began supporting the development of the “Grani” playback theatre in Izmail.
For many people, art is an important means of coming to terms with everyday life during the war.
In addition to supporting local organizations, forumZFD also contributed to other projects initiated by the playback community. Among these was “Story Collectors”, where participants gathered and creatively processed documentary stories about the war in Ukraine. Another project is called “Providing socio-psychological support to Ukrainians through artistic events”. These events include art therapy and creative sessions aimed at strengthening social connections, restoring the value of life, and reflecting on traumatic experiences.
Despite the outbreak of full-scale war, forumZFD, which had not previously engaged in humanitarian aid, promptly redirected its resources to address the most urgent needs: food, water, medicine, and hygiene supplies. Once these basic needs were met, the forum resumed its cultural projects, recognizing the growing need for people to pause, listen to themselves, and share their stories.
“Ukrainians have a strong desire to tell their stories, listen to others, feel empathy, and be part of a community that understands them.”
Currently, the playback theatre project continues to expand, with actor training sessions taking place in Chernivtsi and Vinnytsia. Nata Vainilovych emphasized the importance of this social art form, which fosters inclusivity, allows people to hear diverse experiences, and feel the support that brings healing.
After the performance, the actors invite the audience to a Q&A session and informal conversations. Nearly everyone stays for the discussion. If not for the curfew, the exchange of thoughts, hugs, and conversations could have lasted much longer, as this connection is deeply needed by everyone present.
Yevheniya Sobolyeva reports from Ukraine as a freelance journalist in Odesa.
