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It definitely is a pleasant experience to travel here and even the armed forces at checkpoints can be very helpful especially if one is lost. Today, Batticaloa is the focal point where various communities from Pollonaruwa, Batticaloa and Trincomalee come together to make a difference in their community. By bringing out various issues and offering different solutions via a collective effort, a new art form has given rise to forum theatre or 'drama with a difference'. InnovativeForum theatre was initiated by an innovative and influential theatre director cum writer called Augusto Boal who allowed members of the audience to stop a performance and propose a change (especially when a person is treated in an oppressed manner) to offer a better solution to the story. This concept is known as 'simultaneous dramaturgy' where different actions were suggested for the actors to carry out on-stage in an attempt to change the outcome of what they were seeing. This is also a groundbreaking technique to break the traditional audience/actor partition to bring audience members into the performance, by having an input into the dramatic action that they were watching. "I feel more confident in myself after I joined forum theatre as I knew I can make a difference no matter how small", Senthuran, the narrator and actor of a forum theatre event presented by the British Council through their Beyond Borders project said. By entrusting the drama expertise of trainers from reputed acting academies with the joint effort by Batticaloa trainer Vanni at the 'Centre for Performing Arts', the ordinary community folk became stars overnight. Theatre conceptThe National Coordinator of the Centre for Performing Arts, S.J.V. Swaminathan said that the forum theatre concept is extremely beneficial to the people of Batticaloa and today, many who are willing to come forward to do more than acting also want to train and spread the message of community development. "I always thought I could solve my own problems but after my involvement with forum theatre, I realized that I wasn't alone and many people were willing to help by sharing their experiences", Jeewani from Neluwana said.
"I learnt alot through my experiences with the forum theatre group and it widened my horizons because I made friends with people from other communities and understood how life was like for them", 19-year old student from Pollonaruwa, Neluka said. "It was an intensely emotional period when the preliminary training was done, as they were reenacting their lives onstage", Sinhala trainer Nalinda Premaratne said. However, as they gained confidence they developed their personality and even helped members of their own community as they were rebuilding their lives through this medium. "We make the performers feel that their lives are dependant on the act at hand and if they don't fully concentrate on their role, then the message becomes unclear as every action, expression and emotion is firmly dependant on it", Tamil trainer Pupalasinghem Pratheepan from Trincomalee added. The first play was about two varieties of birds living in harmony in a fruit-bearing tree where they call home. Depicting the different human races, the drama shows how a simple thing can break the harmonious relationships between communities. The other drama focuses on the traditional Tamil community and where a family can be destroyed by aspects like a drunken unfaithful husband, the strict tradtional matrimonial system, domestic violence and women inequality. PerformanceSays Country Director Gill Westaway of the British Council, "The response was overwhelming when the drama ended and many were willing to speak about more on issues that they felt strongly about with regard to the performance". The fact that the performers' own community members give different solutions to the problems within the society speaks volumes that everyone can make a difference to help others, she said. Through forum theatre, the audience will now go back to their homes and will make a small change either by behavior or reasoning and this is the essence that will develop better communities. "Beyond Borders""Beyond Borders" is an initiative by the British Council that seeks to create links between the UK, Bangladesh, India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka in 2005." The theme revolving around "Beyond Borders" is that it is a platform where young people can express themselves and work on development issues that they feel strongly about. A volunteer group managed and spearheaded by the youth, their ideas focus on identity, diversity and active global citizenship that fire the true spirit of "Beyond Borders". They hope to enlighten society on pressing issues and how best to solve with the best interests of the people. Their objective is also to highlight on social and development issues and action aimed at bringing about long-term and sustainable change. Being a youth organization, their strength lies in working with other young people on peer-education initiatives, promoting causes we believe in and helping other civil society actors to help create a better country and a better world, one step at a time. At the moment, "Beyond Borders" is focusing on issues related to peace, governance and citizenship. British Council has been successful with their 'Beyond Borders" project as it linked 19 (23) core group members within Sri Lanka who participated in a regional workshop in India. They delivered a training of trainer session on sexual health education where they will in turn, train their peers in schools. Activity plans were also developed for schools and communities and various different communication methods like interviews, forum theatre and workshops to reach their target audience. -ND Eastern LaudI dreamt of the eastern land
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