Marina Pallarès Elias
Creator of Theatre of Yes — applied theatre that gives voice to the silenced
Biography
PhD from the University of West London, trained in Dramatherapy (Anglia Ruskin University) and Physical Theatre (École Jacques Lecoq). For over 20 years I have developed Theatre of Yes, a scenic creation methodology applied in 12 countries with excluded and marginalised communities, bringing together artistic beauty and social transformation.
The Theatre of Yes methodology
A scenic creation methodology I have been developing for over 20 years, travelling and learning alongside communities around the world. It was born from the desire to give voice to stories that are so often left in silence, bringing together artistic beauty and social transformation. Today I have already shared it in 12 countries, and it keeps growing.
Theatre of Yes Trainings
I share the methodology I have developed over more than 20 years with artists, therapists, and professionals who work with communities. A space to learn a scenic language that turns vulnerability into creative strength, and beauty into a tool for collective transformation.
Research
Everything that Theatre of Yes is today was born from years of research, both academic and in the field. During my doctorate at the University of West London, I had the chance to give a name and a structure to something I had been practising for a long time: how art, when done with honesty, can become a real tool for transformation. Since then I have never stopped researching, documenting, and refining each process, because for me practice and knowledge need each other in order to keep growing. This research is the quiet foundation that holds up every project, every training, and every story we bring to the stage.
Portafolio Artístico
Here you’ll find a selection of the projects that have meant the most to me over the years. Each piece is born from a personal story, told together with the people and communities who live it. It’s a small journey through more than two decades of shared creation.
Theatre Creator and PhD in Performing Arts
Theatre is my passion, and working with people is my mission. I firmly believe in theatre as a tool to amplify voices that so often find no space to be heard, and to discover new possibilities where before there only seemed to be limits. I believe in creating from beauty, because I am convinced that beauty also transforms, heals, and gives dignity to every story we bring to the stage.
My path wasn’t a direct one. I started training in Theatre of the Oppressed, and later did a Master’s in Dramatherapy in the UK, always looking for new tools to work with honesty alongside communities. But I felt something was missing: real artistic quality, a beauty that wasn’t sacrificed for the sake of the social message. That’s how Theatre of Yes was born, my own methodology that I built over more than 20 years of practice, and which I was finally able to articulate and deepen through my doctorate at the University of West London.
Book of Theatre of Yes
This book brings together everything I’ve learned about Theatre of Yes, with patience and care, so you can bring it into your own work. It’s written for those of you working in the performing arts, in social work, or in psychology. I hope you find it as useful as it has been for me to build it.
Discover my services
Theatre Creator
I accompany companies, collectives, and institutions in creating scenic pieces with an honest and transformative outlook. I direct from a place of listening, helping each story find its most beautiful and truthful form on stage.
Training in Theatre of Yes
I offer training for professionals in the performing arts, social work, and psychology who want to bring this methodology into their own practice. Each training combines theory and practice, always grounded in direct experience.
Research and Consultancy
I collaborate with cultural institutions, universities, and projects seeking to integrate applied theatre into their programmes. I bring years of doctoral and field research to help design processes with rigour and sensitivity.
