Drama Show

Dramatic performances, May 2010

As a conclusion of the drama workshops that had started at the end of January, the drama group of Umbrella was on stage for four evenings from May 16^th to 21^st.  The show took place in four of the eight Umbrella houses (the ones where the drama players originated), inviting at each of them another house that would not have the luck to receive it inside their own walls.

The performance, involving 17 children ranging from 13 to 17 years old, lasted approximately one and a half hours, and was constituted of three plays created by the children themselves and covering the following topics: teenagers and drugs, skin color discrimination, and belief in gods.

After organizing the groups and distributing the roles according to preferences, the children then started to do some improvisations to see where this could/would lead us. Slowly slowly a few weeks later, each participant had found a way to be his/her character, the stage occupation was defined and only some last details about costumes, make-up, props, etc. had to be finalized.

Once the calendar of performances was established, the house parents were informed that some of their children would be kept away from the homework routine for a few evenings, and the four targeted houses scanned to find the best spot for playing drama, it was soon time to go on stage.

Thanks to awesome rechargeable lights (electricity is an issue in Nepal: never, ever rely on the official load schedule. Such is the rule.) coupled with very good quality laptops and mini speaker batteries, the show was performed successfully in a variety of venues: in the elegant dark of two roof terraces (Sagarmatha and Machhapuchhre), the slightly brighter – and much warmer – atmosphere of one dining room (Gaurishankar – on that evening, the weather just did not want to help), and the interesting hip-hop atmosphere of a colorful basketball playground at night (Annapurna).

The show, different every performance (but also longer evening after evening: 1h20 the first time, 1h45 the last time! Such is the magic when improvisation is a main ingredient of the recipe), was a big success each time. The audience (mostly children, but also the Nepali staff) enjoyed it very much and just loved it, and the actors had lots of fun too. Some “I also drama, Sister!” were heard here and there, indicating that some children may have discovered for themselves a new center of interest for the future.

Also, some foreigner volunteers were seen coming back several times, thus giving a clear rating of the quality of the performance: so good that it captivated their attention although the language barrier kept them from understanding the content in detail!

Could this nice ending give birth to a longer term and more established Umbrella drama team…? Considering how successful the project was and how talented the children are, this would be great!

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Actors:

Bandana, Srijana, Kabita 1, Kabita 2, Lila, Sarita, from Gaurishankar.

Anita, from Sagarmatha.

Anil, Amrit, Deepak, Rahul, Robin, from Annapurna. (+ Arjun, scenario only)

Shiva, Vishambar, Bikesh, Narayan, Jalman, from Machhapuchhre