At ASHTAR everyone is both an educator and a learner. Right from the start we encourage our trainees to be creative and critical, getting them used to the idea that learning is a two-way process. Even long-in-the-tooth professionals benefit from sharing, working and playing with trainees - their objectivity , their questions and interpretations help to keep us fresh. But it doesn’t stop there. At every level we strive to involve the Palestinian community:
1. We work with youth in their high-schools, universities, summer- camps and beyond. Since the outbreak of the Intifada, closures have continually disrupted the school system. With only limited time, schools have shed artistic or creative programs as being ‘unnecessary’ or ‘superfluous’ ( ! ) Need we say more ?
2. Through productions in our studio and on tour. We have our school program but we also try to communicate with those for whom a school program came too late. ( If indeed they ever got the opportunity to go to school in the first place). We hold performances in our own studios in Ramallah but as often as not, to get our message across, we have to take the mountain to Mohammed. Armed with little more than a couple of trunks, false eyelashes and a smile, we have performed at venues as diverse as open forests, class rooms and wedding halls ( mirrored ceilings included). We have toured around the Middle East and farther afield, carrying our message to others and providing an alternative outlet for Palestinians to vent their feelings of frustration within their own society and at their situation.
3. Through organisation of and participation in festivals and cultural events. We want to create a vibrant and meaningful theatre tradition in Palestine and use it to raise awareness of the economic, social and political issues that beset our country at this time. We are dedicated to bringing our messages and challenges to the forefront of people’s mind - both within Palestine and on a world stage.
a. "Martyrs
Are Coming Back....." up-coming tour dates.
Our double award winning production is soon to participate in two festivals,
the Amman Professional Theatre Festival, 15th - 20th October, 1997,
and, the "Peatre Neimtz" theatre festival in April, 1998.
b. Brecht’s
Week - October 1997
To commemorate the hundred years since his birth, ASHTAR, in association
with the Goethe Institute, will be holding "Brecht’s Week", a
celebration of the works, and contributions to theatre, of Bertolt Brecht.
For more information on Brecht’s Week see
"The
Hot Zone"
c. Sitges International Theatre Festival, June
1997 In June, 1997,
we took part in this festival with two performances of "Martyrs are
Coming Back....".
d. The Jerusalem Festival, May 1997.
As part of this festival, ASHTAR organised "The Arab Theatre Week".
e. The 8th Cairo International Festival for
Experimental Theatre,
September 1996. We represented Palestine at this festival with two performances
of " Martyrs are Coming Back.....". We were presented with two
awards, one for ‘Best Actress’, the second for ‘Best Arab Play’.
4. Working with Others.... In an unstable and uncertain country in particular, people need solid things to focus on. Until we established the ASHTAR Studio, there were very few permanent venues for the Arts, nowhere for the young people to come and experiment in safety. And, no fixed addresses for the rest of the world to find us. Now that we have the studio, we have a new focus for the local community, the local arts scene and international attention too.
A. The National Scene - Theatre as a family
member of the arts movement in Palestine
In case you didn’t know already, Palestine is a pretty small country,
and the Arts scene within it is, to put it kindly, somewhat smaller than
that! Therefore, it becomes vital that we stick together, exchanging our
ideas, and sharing our appreciation and belief in Art as a valid form
of free expression. Dance groups, music groups, artistic bodies and
centres, NGOs, old / ex students and friends of ASHTAR, we all encourage
and support each other in what we do.
B. ASHTAR as a Host - International / regional
organizations in which ASHTAR is a Palestinian supporter
In 1995 a group of theatre people from the community founded the Palestinian
Centre of the International Institute of the Theatre of the Mediterranean.
( Because they like long titles). ASHTAR acts as a mediator and host for
this group of 21 countries around the Mediterranean who come together in
order to promote and develop the expression of Mediterranean visual culture.
And, encourage initiatives of cultural and theatrical exchange through
research, creation, publication, co-operation and co-productions .....
basically anything that develops its objectives.
International Theatre Institute
This world renowned instiution needs no introduction. Unfortunately, the Jerusalem based I.T.I centre is somewhat dormant. However, we have maintianed links with our "extended family" of I.T.I. centres worldwide, through attending seminars and conferences, and keeping open a two-way channel for information sharing.
C. International Theatre Friends of Ashtar
Part of ASHTAR’s main cultural aim is to create cultural bridges with theatres all over the world. To achieve this, we reach out for artistic collaboration, with theatre individuals, groups and/or organisations, who carry mutual views and visions of the importance of theatre in the role of youth and its role in supporting a foundation for healthy growth.
For three years in a row, ASHTAR co-produced its summer youth productions with Maralam Theatre from Switzerland and a year later with the Berlin-based group THEATREMiTTE form Germany.
In addition to this, we have a program of short courses for adults ( three months) teaching particular theatre skills such as Lighting, Make-up. Often experts from abroad have advised on or run them.
For us each new individual has a voice, each new voice brings a new world. The more new worlds we find the farther our perspective can reach and thus the smaller the world becomes.
And now things have become even closer, with the invention of this wonderful Internet. And here we are ........willing to reach into your world as much as invite you into ours, both through this machine and in person.
You Scratch our Back ......
...... and we’ll scratch yours.
Auditions:
We have professional artists highly experienced in the fields of acting, directing, producing, translation...
Tours:
We are willing and able to demonstrate or tour in your country, or to help you organise a tour here
Agents:
We are constantly seeking new contacts, agents. We are keen to widen our contacts with theatres, groups and individuals, both on-line and with a view to future co-operation.
If you are planning a visit to this region, or if you know of others who are, pass on our name. Literature, Opinions, Advice, Suggestions: We are always interested to hear about new concepts and techniques in the world of acting and teaching theatre skills. We can advise you on theatre works from this region and concepts/ideas we’ve tried, both performing and teaching.
Or simply get to know us as theatre people like you....
Try our "Hot Zone" for more information on up-coming events
