Child’s Play

The three-day CEVA Children’s Community Festival will see budding actors from five schools take centrestage

Silence speaks louder than words and expressions take the place of sounds. For the students of Vatika School for Deaf and Dumb,being part of the theatre workshop by Centre for Education and Voluntary Action (CEVA) has gone beyond just an act. It’s given them an experience and perspective and the gift of expression,one that they will stage in the opening play of CEVA Children’s Community Festival,Raja Ki Sair. Funded by the HRD,Delhi,these theatre workshops conducted in various schools translate into a full-fledged annual festival and this year,five schools will be part of the festival which begins on April 30 at the Plaza. “It’s a complete medium of learning and working with these children was a wholesome experience for us. First,the challenge was to learn their language and communicate with them,’’ informs Vijay,who’s involved with the entire philosophy and working of the festival. “We helped them emote with expressions and use silence as their means to converse. They are very sharp and are totally absorbed in the process,’’ Vijay explains that the festival’s USP is improvization. Encouraging the children to use their imagination,evolve a script using an idea,then use their acting skills to stage a story was part of the process. “All the plays are child-oriented and speak of common issues faced by children,be it numerous television channels,the burden of studies,pressure to excel in every field,high expectations,’’ Vijay adds that the duration of the plays are not more than 40 minutes,the focus being to give children a chance to use their creative energies positively. Other participating schools include British,Government Model 35,Government Model 20,Jawahar Navodya Vidyalya. The stage is set,5.30 pm onwards at Sector 17 Plaza.