Newsletter Issue 2 Jenin, May 2007
Dear Friends,
Just over a year since the official opening, The Freedom Theatre has many things to be proud of - some of which are related to you by our young actors in our latest video clip (see link below). These youth are currently beginning work on their first own theatre productions which will be performed in our newly upgraded theatre in Jenin Refugee Camp. As the only professional stage in the northern West Bank, our theatre currently serves a constituency of thousands of children and youth in the camp, soon to be extended to include those residing in Jenin town and surrounding villages.
We have received wonderful support which continues to grow, but our programme is growing even faster and we are therefore still in great need of funds. We hope that with your help, we will be able to continue defying the circumstances of the cruel siege, ongoing assassinations and international boycott of Palestine, by bringing our message to the children of Jenin - struggle for freedom through culture and arts!
The Freedom Theatre
In the coming weeks, The Freedom Theatre's acting groups are beginning work on the theatre's very first own productions. Respecting the social norms of the local community, two separate productions will be staged - one by girls and one by boys.
During the three-month production period, the boys' group will work on a unique play which draws on their experiences of life in Jenin Camp, written and directed by Valantina Abu Oqsa, an actress and director from Haifa. The girls' group will work on an adaptation of George Orwell's The Animal Farm, under the direction of The Freedom Theatre's General Director, Juliano Mer Khamis.
All the youth currently participating in the acting workshops will play an active role in these productions. Around 10 youth from each group will be chosen to act in the play, while others will take on other responsibilities - supporting the directors, sound and light technicians, stage managers, costume designers and the publicity team.
The plays will be performed at The Freedom Theatre during the month of August, after which the groups will hopefully tour and perform the plays in other parts of Palestine and, possibly, abroad.
To finalise this project The Freedom Theatre is still looking for additional funding. If you would like to be part of supporting the youth's first own productions, please click here!
Since its establishment, the aim of The Freedom Theatre has been to set up a professional stage in Jenin Refugee Camp, where Palestinian and international artists can perform on a high level. This first phase of fulfilling this aim has now been accomplished.
Thanks to the recent support granted by the Karim Rida Said Foundation in the U.K., The Freedom Theatre has been able to complete the final stages of equipping and renovating the current theatre. The Freedom Theatre now offers a semi-professional stage, including complete sound and lighting systems, comfortable seating for an audience of up to 200 children or adults, as well as a control tower for sound and lighting.
Funds collected by the Friends of the Jenin Freedom Theatre in the US have also made it possible to install an air-conditioning system in the theatre, without which summer activities would be torture!
Since this project was finalised, The Freedom Theatre has started hosting more frequent shows at the theatre. The first performance staged in the newly renovated space consisted of a play by Al Kasaba Theatre from Ramallah, and, during the coming month, several other groups will perform at the theatre as part of a theatre festival ("Theatre of the Oppressed") organised by Ashtar Theatre from Ramallah. Many more shows are scheduled to take place during the summer, including The Freedom Theatre's first own productions.
Growing up surrounded by checkpoints and roadblocks, the majority of children and youth in Jenin Camp have either little or no experience of life outside their community. The heavy restrictions on movement imposed by the Israeli occupation leave very few opportunities for the local population to visit other parts of Palestine, let alone travel abroad.
The Freedom Theatre has therefore initiated a programme of regular field trips for its different groups. Travelling as a group under the protection of a non-governmental organisation, it is possible for the youth to make trips outside the camp. During the month of March, the girls' and boys' acting groups made in two separate trips to Ramallah. Returning to the camp under great excitement, the girls had seen snow for the first time in their lives and the boys got to spend the night in Ramallah.
The main destination of these field trips was a visit to Al Kasaba Theatre in Ramallah, where the youth saw performances and met with the actors. A large complex, housing two professional stages as well as a cinema, Al Kasaba works to activate cultural life in Palestine, staging their own theatrical productions and by hosting a wide range of arts performances and cultural activities.
More field trips, around Palestine and possibly abroad, are planned for the future.
The library currently consists of around 400 books related to theatre and arts, 50 CDs and tapes, as well as 20 DVDs, with many more donations of library material expected in the future. If you would like to contribute books or other materials to the library, please get in touch!
The space, which also contains visual and audio equipment for viewing and listening to library materials, is open for children who participate in The Freedom Theatre's activities, as well as staff and instructors who want to deepen their knowledge of art and culture.
An important solidarity event recently took place in Malmo, in the south of Sweden, organised by The Friends of The Freedom Theatre in Malmo, in cooperation with several cultural and solidarity organisations. With the aim of raising funds for professional cinema equipment at The Freedom Theatre, a large concert was organised, bringing together both Swedish and international bands, artists and DJs, including Checkpoint 303 and The (International) Noise Conspiracy. Organisers as well as artists carried out this project on a purely voluntary basis and all revenues will go to the benefit of The Freedom Theatre.
Stockholm Theatres Relay Funds to Jenin
Several theatres in the Stockholm region in Sweden have recently joined forces in an act of solidarity with Palestinian artists, by committing to contribute the revenues from selected performances to The Freedom Theatre. Once a theatre has completed its event, the baton is passed to another. This fundraising effort is coordinated by the Friends of The Freedom Theatre in Stockholm and the idea is now spreading nationwide and, perhaps, internationally. Is your theatre interested?
Series of Events in the United States
During the first two weeks of May an extensive fundraising and networking tour was organised by the Friends of The Jenin Freedom Theatre in the United States. Meetings, events and film screenings were held in New York, as well as in Los Angeles. For more information about our friends in the US, please visit their new website: http://friendsofthejeninfreedomtheatre.org
Exhibition on Tour
At the beginning of March, the tour of The Freedom Theatre's international exhibition, Do Not Forget - Lebanon, July 2006, began. The first destination was Umm El Fahem, a Palestinian town inside Israel, and, since then, part of the exhibition has travelled to Sweden. After touring several Swedish towns, there are plans for the exhibition to travel to Germany and Australia. If you are interested in displaying the exhibition, please contact us.
To support the theatre's work with children and youth in Jenin Camp, you can:
For more information, please see: http://www.thefreedomtheatre.org/support.php
Just over a year since the official opening, The Freedom Theatre has many things to be proud of - some of which are related to you by our young actors in our latest video clip (see link below). These youth are currently beginning work on their first own theatre productions which will be performed in our newly upgraded theatre in Jenin Refugee Camp. As the only professional stage in the northern West Bank, our theatre currently serves a constituency of thousands of children and youth in the camp, soon to be extended to include those residing in Jenin town and surrounding villages.
We have received wonderful support which continues to grow, but our programme is growing even faster and we are therefore still in great need of funds. We hope that with your help, we will be able to continue defying the circumstances of the cruel siege, ongoing assassinations and international boycott of Palestine, by bringing our message to the children of Jenin - struggle for freedom through culture and arts!
The Freedom Theatre
Meet The Freedom Theatre's young actors and see the theatre, one year after it's opening, in a new video clip! »
In this Issue:
- Young Actors "In Production"
- Upgraded Theatre Ready for Busy Schedule of Shows
- Breaking the Siege - Acting Groups in Ramallah
- Arts and Media Library
- In Brief
- Support Us!
Young Actors "In Production"
In the coming weeks, The Freedom Theatre's acting groups are beginning work on the theatre's very first own productions. Respecting the social norms of the local community, two separate productions will be staged - one by girls and one by boys.During the three-month production period, the boys' group will work on a unique play which draws on their experiences of life in Jenin Camp, written and directed by Valantina Abu Oqsa, an actress and director from Haifa. The girls' group will work on an adaptation of George Orwell's The Animal Farm, under the direction of The Freedom Theatre's General Director, Juliano Mer Khamis.
All the youth currently participating in the acting workshops will play an active role in these productions. Around 10 youth from each group will be chosen to act in the play, while others will take on other responsibilities - supporting the directors, sound and light technicians, stage managers, costume designers and the publicity team.
The plays will be performed at The Freedom Theatre during the month of August, after which the groups will hopefully tour and perform the plays in other parts of Palestine and, possibly, abroad.
To finalise this project The Freedom Theatre is still looking for additional funding. If you would like to be part of supporting the youth's first own productions, please click here!
Upgraded Theatre Ready for Busy Schedule of Shows
Since its establishment, the aim of The Freedom Theatre has been to set up a professional stage in Jenin Refugee Camp, where Palestinian and international artists can perform on a high level. This first phase of fulfilling this aim has now been accomplished.Thanks to the recent support granted by the Karim Rida Said Foundation in the U.K., The Freedom Theatre has been able to complete the final stages of equipping and renovating the current theatre. The Freedom Theatre now offers a semi-professional stage, including complete sound and lighting systems, comfortable seating for an audience of up to 200 children or adults, as well as a control tower for sound and lighting.
Funds collected by the Friends of the Jenin Freedom Theatre in the US have also made it possible to install an air-conditioning system in the theatre, without which summer activities would be torture!
Since this project was finalised, The Freedom Theatre has started hosting more frequent shows at the theatre. The first performance staged in the newly renovated space consisted of a play by Al Kasaba Theatre from Ramallah, and, during the coming month, several other groups will perform at the theatre as part of a theatre festival ("Theatre of the Oppressed") organised by Ashtar Theatre from Ramallah. Many more shows are scheduled to take place during the summer, including The Freedom Theatre's first own productions.
» Donate to The Freedom Theatre!
Breaking the Siege - Acting Groups in Ramallah
Growing up surrounded by checkpoints and roadblocks, the majority of children and youth in Jenin Camp have either little or no experience of life outside their community. The heavy restrictions on movement imposed by the Israeli occupation leave very few opportunities for the local population to visit other parts of Palestine, let alone travel abroad.The Freedom Theatre has therefore initiated a programme of regular field trips for its different groups. Travelling as a group under the protection of a non-governmental organisation, it is possible for the youth to make trips outside the camp. During the month of March, the girls' and boys' acting groups made in two separate trips to Ramallah. Returning to the camp under great excitement, the girls had seen snow for the first time in their lives and the boys got to spend the night in Ramallah.
The main destination of these field trips was a visit to Al Kasaba Theatre in Ramallah, where the youth saw performances and met with the actors. A large complex, housing two professional stages as well as a cinema, Al Kasaba works to activate cultural life in Palestine, staging their own theatrical productions and by hosting a wide range of arts performances and cultural activities.
More field trips, around Palestine and possibly abroad, are planned for the future.
Arts and Media Library
After receiving a generous donation from Pnina Feiler, an Arts and Media Library has begun taking shape at The Freedom Theatre. It has been set up in the name of Pnina Felier's late husband Eliezer Feiler - a communist and activist who fought a life-long struggle for real and equal coexistence between Jews and Arabs.The library currently consists of around 400 books related to theatre and arts, 50 CDs and tapes, as well as 20 DVDs, with many more donations of library material expected in the future. If you would like to contribute books or other materials to the library, please get in touch!The space, which also contains visual and audio equipment for viewing and listening to library materials, is open for children who participate in The Freedom Theatre's activities, as well as staff and instructors who want to deepen their knowledge of art and culture.
In Brief
Artists Mobilise in Support of The Freedom TheatreAn important solidarity event recently took place in Malmo, in the south of Sweden, organised by The Friends of The Freedom Theatre in Malmo, in cooperation with several cultural and solidarity organisations. With the aim of raising funds for professional cinema equipment at The Freedom Theatre, a large concert was organised, bringing together both Swedish and international bands, artists and DJs, including Checkpoint 303 and The (International) Noise Conspiracy. Organisers as well as artists carried out this project on a purely voluntary basis and all revenues will go to the benefit of The Freedom Theatre.
Stockholm Theatres Relay Funds to Jenin
Several theatres in the Stockholm region in Sweden have recently joined forces in an act of solidarity with Palestinian artists, by committing to contribute the revenues from selected performances to The Freedom Theatre. Once a theatre has completed its event, the baton is passed to another. This fundraising effort is coordinated by the Friends of The Freedom Theatre in Stockholm and the idea is now spreading nationwide and, perhaps, internationally. Is your theatre interested?
Series of Events in the United States
During the first two weeks of May an extensive fundraising and networking tour was organised by the Friends of The Jenin Freedom Theatre in the United States. Meetings, events and film screenings were held in New York, as well as in Los Angeles. For more information about our friends in the US, please visit their new website: http://friendsofthejeninfreedomtheatre.org
Exhibition on Tour
At the beginning of March, the tour of The Freedom Theatre's international exhibition, Do Not Forget - Lebanon, July 2006, began. The first destination was Umm El Fahem, a Palestinian town inside Israel, and, since then, part of the exhibition has travelled to Sweden. After touring several Swedish towns, there are plans for the exhibition to travel to Germany and Australia. If you are interested in displaying the exhibition, please contact us.
Support Us!
The long-term sustainability of The Freedom Theatre depends on the generous donations of you and your friends.To support the theatre's work with children and youth in Jenin Camp, you can:
- Make a Bank transfer directly to The Freedom Theatre's account, more info »
- Donate online using PayPal, more info »
- Set up a monthly payment to The Freedom Theatre, more info »
- Buy a copy of the film Arna's Children, more info »
- Join or support one of The Freedom Theatre's friendship associations, more info »
For more information, please see: http://www.thefreedomtheatre.org/support.php