By Timira Gupta, IANS
Panaji : They are kids who once stood at car windows and begged with tears in their eyes. Now they walk on stilts, juggle and do acrobatics for a theatrical street performance, an attempt to bring a little fantasy to life and to inspire all to smile.
They are part of the ‘Laboratory of Smiles’, a group of 25 underprivileged children trained by an Italian theatre troupe, Teatro Per Caso, for a performance that is touring the three cities of Mumbai, Pune and Panaji this month.
The brainchild of Erica Vicenzi of Teatro Per Caso, the project is aimed at supporting neglected children in India through the medium of theatre. It was launched last year in collaboration with El Shaddai, a shelter for street children in Goa.
It all began when Erica visited India some years ago and returned to Italy “feeling different”.
“India felt like home to me and I knew I had to return to do something meaningful,” Erica told IANS. Her theatre group has been working in the field of children’s theatre since 1996. They designed the project and called it ‘Laboratory of Smiles’.
After putting up a performance with 200 children last year, Teatro Per Caso decided to shift focus on 25 children this time around.
“It wasn’t logistically possible to take 200 children on a three-city tour and we wanted the project to grow out of Goa,” says Erica, “The only way the children will grow is if the project takes a step forward each year.”
Teatro Per Caso consists of seven artistes who fit in like pieces in a puzzle. Each of them has an assigned role andplays it to perfection.
Diego is the stilt-making expert, Erica trains children on stilts and Sonia instructs acrobats and jugglers. Barbara’s the seamstress in charge of elaborate costumes, while Sarah takes care of administration. Pablita captures priceless moments on her Canon and Stefano’s the official filmmaker.
One may think that language would act as a barrier between the team and the children, “But theatre is about delivering a message through expression and that’s exactly what we practise,” says Erica, “The children learn so quickly, it’s fantastic!”
For the majority of the children from the troupe, this was the first time out of Goa. On Children’s Day, the troupe performed for more than 1,500 children, over two days, in Mumbai.
Ask them what excites them most about the tour and a prompt reply, almost in unison, resonates, “We hope that Bollywood actors come to watch our performances, we would love to meet them!”
On Nov 14 they performed for the children of Vinimay Trust and Our Children and Nov 15, Azad Maidan was speckled with street children from Salam Balak Trust.
The most striking part is the connection and the interaction between the children who perform and who come to watch.
Abdul, a 13-year-old ace stilt-walker, says, “We come from similar backgrounds; I was a street child too. We never imagined we would come this far, learn theatre and make a tour of three cities. Through this show I feel that all those children watching us will start dreaming big and believing in those dreams. Life can really surprise you.”
(Timira Gupta is a journalist working out of Mumbai. She can be reached at [email protected])