Pro Public has successfully completed the EnActing Dialogue Project – 2016 in association with CSSP – Berlin Center for Integrative Mediation, Berlin, Germany. This was a second phase of project implemented since March 2015 aiming to support in the national reconciliation process from bottom up approach in Nepal. The major activities accomplished under the project were as follow:
Activity No.: 1 Updated on February 25, 2016
Pro Public and CSSP signed a Cooperation Agreement
Forum for Protection of Public Interest (Pro Public) and CSSP – Berlin Centre for Integrative Mediation, Germany signed a cooperation agreement to continue/implement the project on dialogue through playback theatre for one more year (Jan. 2016 to Dec. 2016) in six communities of six different districts i.e. Gulariya Municipality, Bardiya; Binauna VDC, Banke; Bijauri VDC, Dang, Sainamaina Municipality, Rupandehi, Bardibas Municipality, Mahottari and Triyuga Municipality, Udayapur. The project is entitled as “EnActing Dialogue – Community level reconciliation through theatre-facilitated dialogue” this time. The project provides common and safe space for story telling/sharing to an individual in a group of community people in this post-conflict phase of Nepal aiming to achieve following objects:
- Strengthening local capacities for theatre-facilitated dialogue in communities where high numbers of ex-combatants and conflict victims have settled.
- Responding to a strong request from the community level, the project stays in the same districts as in 2015, shifting its focus slowly towards the enhancement of existing capacities for multiplication, and
- Promoting community level healing and reconciliation through playback theatre.
The major activities of project are to 1) build additional capacity of national level theatre artists through advance level playback laboratory with International expert on playback theatre; 2) Enhance capacity of two dialogue facilitators from each of the project district on program conduction and facilitation by international expert; 3) Equip all 48 dialogue facilitators with additional skills and motivation for playback performances in communities through dialogue camp, and 4) Organize a national level program to out-reach the project activities among national and international peace workers and stakeholders through impact documentary, sharing and interactions.
Activity No.: 2 Updated on March 03, 2016
Pro Public starts the Training Facilitation Programs on Playback Theatre
Under the project – EnActing Dialogue – Community level reconciliation through theatre-facilitated dialogue, Pro Public has duly started the training facilitation programs on playback theatre (Chautari Natak) starting with Advanced Level Training to Theatre Camp. Pro Public is overwhelmingly pleased to welcome Dr. Jonathan Fox – Founder of Playback Theatre, as an international training facilitator in Nepal, this year. The advanced level training is started to train 12 national level professional theatre artists about additional playback skills which takes place in Balthali, Kavre on March 3 to 6, 2016. The Training will be further supported to facilitate by Integrative Mediator from CSSP and manage by Pro Public’s project team. It aims to build capacity of the artists for training and mentoring the dialogue facilitators during the project implementation in community level along with strengthening the pool of playback theatre team for the sustainability of Chautari Natak in Nepal. Dr. Fox is highly impressed with the activities of Pro Public through playback theatre and skills learnt by the group of Nepali theatre artists for last one year in Nepal and excited to further specify the skills and learning in same. He really liked the connotation of playback theatre as Chautari Natak in Nepal.
After the advanced training, the Conductors’ Training on Chautari Natak will be facilitated by Dr. Fox with 12 dialogue facilitators of six project districts from March 10 to 13, 2016 in Butwal, Rupandehi aiming to build capacity on performance conduction. Five theatre artists will observe the training to learn more to training the dialogue facilitators. Similarly, Playback Theatre Camp for 48 dialogue facilitators is planned to organize on March 16-20, 2016 in Gaidakot, Nawalparasi. After completing these three training, Pro Public will start to implement the multiplication and follow up of Chautari Natak for healing and reconciliation works in the communities.
Activity No.: 3 Updated on March 21, 2016
Pro Public completed the Training Facilitation Programs on EnActing Dialogue Project
Aiming to enhance the additional capacity of theatre artists and dialogue facilitators about playback theatre under the EnActing Dialogue Project, Pro Public recently completed to organize the three different training facilitation programs on playback theatre in association with CSSP, Berlin, Germany during the month of March, 2016.
The journey of training facilitations started from Kathmandu during first week of March participating 12 national level theatre artists in the Advanced Level Training on playback Theatre facilitated by Dr. Jonathan Fox – Co-founder of Playback Theatre and International Playback Trainer. It was a great opportunity for Pro Public to have Dr. Fox as training facilitator in Nepal for this project. Dr. Fox expressed his due respect to Nepali theatre practitioners and supported to explore better hope for Playback future in the country. Dr. Fox trained the Jonathan way of playback from March 3 to 6, 2016 in Balthali – 4, Kavre and March 10 to 13, 2016 in Butwal, Rupandehi to theatre artists and dialogue facilitators from different communities, respectively. The public performance of Playback Theatre among the local dwellers of Sunwal Municipality by the trained dialogue facilitators was also held on March 13, 2016 to honor Dr. Fox and get public exposure in different community. Dr. Fox tried his best to caliber the capacity of DFs in playback conduction in their communities adding few more techniques and confidence.
Following the Conductors’ training, the project successfully organized a five-day long playback theatre camp from 16 to 20, 2016 inviting all 48 DFs from six different project communities. During the theatre camp, the advanced training to DFs was given in three different group engaging 16 DFs in each group. They were trained by Integrative Mediator from CSSP and lead theatre artists. The opening and closing of training was unique due to its theatrical characteristics. At the end of training, all the DFs were further empowered for community level performance of playback theatre which is due to start soon.
Activity No.: 4 Updated on April 15, 2016
EnActing Dialogue Project multiplies the Playback Theatre Performances in the Communities
EnActing Dialogue Project of Pro Public has gradually started to multiply the playback theatre (Chautari Natak) performances in the communities as a major milestone from April 12, 2016 onwards. For the same purpose, the project team of Pro Public along with lead theatre artist has also started to conduct field visits in the project communities to facilitate the multiplication process. Among all the project districts, team of dialogue facilitators of Udayapur organized their first performance for this year and other DFs’ team also started to multiply the community level performances as per their convenience in coordination with the project team. Throughout the multiplication process, each team of DFs has to perform two meeting with local stakeholders (advisory committee) and 18 episodes of Chautari Natak performances. It is planned to begin the performances in presence of the project team and lead theatre artists aiming to clarify the objective of the project and mentor the DFs for the betterment of the Natak. Some of the performances will be directly observed by the project team and some of the performances will be accomplished by the team of DFs, independently. Meanwhile, the project team will follow up the performances by visiting the communities.
Similarly, advisory meetings in each district is planned to organize by inviting the local level peace stakeholders. It is assumed that each meeting with local stakeholders will be supportive to implement the Natak program in their communities smoothly. The suggestions, comments and support from the local stakeholders will backstop the project activities in the communities.
Activity No.: 5 Updated on September 27, 2016
Pro Public/CSSP successfully accomplished the Multiplication and Follow-up activities under the EnActing Dialogue… Project
Starting since the month of April, 2016, EnActing Dialogue…Project of Pro Public/CSSP completed its community level activities i.e. multiplications, follow-up and monitoring and evaluation so far. Under the multiplication, a team of dialogue facilitators in each district performed 18 playback theatres in different wards of each project VDC/Municipality. Basically, it was planned to perform an episode of playback theatre among 50 audiences in the communities. However, it is noted that approximately 1,000 audiences had opportunity to observe and participate in the playback theatre in each project location in which average four audiences (4*18=72 in total) got opportunity to share their personnel stories during the performances. In this context, total 6,000 audiences including members of advisory committees and 48 dialogue facilitators were directly benefited from the project activities and indirectly it can be estimated that thousands of community people had impressions in their thoughts and behaviors i.e. family members of storytellers, conflict victims, police etc.
During this multiplication phase, the project team also facilitated in order to support and monitor the project activities in the communities. Two follow-up workshops were organized for DFs to coach, refresh and motivate for the betterment of performances and two local (VDC/Municipality) advisory meetings in each district were organized to inform about the project; seek support in coordination and evaluation for way forward. Recently, the external evaluator has also carried out field visit to evaluation the project impacts as a third party independent evaluation.
Activity No.: 6 Updated on November 24, 2016
National Level Interaction Programme under the EnActing Dialogue… Project organized
Pro Public and CSSP jointly organized a national level interaction programme entitled “Chutari Theatre for Sustainable Peace: An interaction programme” on 23rd of November, 2016 under the EnActing Dialogue project. We were honored to invite Mr. Lokendra Mallik, Chairperson of the Commission of Investigation on Enforced Disappeared Persons, Nepal, and Mr. Lila Udasi Khanal, Member of Truth and Reconciliation Commission, Nepal in presence of high level officials from the Government of Nepal i.e. MoPR, Mediation Council, representatives from national and international organizations working in the peacebuilding sectors, academicians, and artists. 12 dialogue facilitators from project districts were invited to share their experiences and learning of the project and the impact documentary was also launched in the programme.
In the programme, Ms. Anne Dirnstorfer, Integrative Mediator from CSSP, welcomed the participants and highlighted on the objective of the programme. Later, the dialogue facilitators presented themselves on the stage to share and impact from the project in an artistic way which was followed by the documentary show. These two activities supported to provide information and insights behind the project. Later, the participants were divided into five groups aiming to providing more information on the project from technique, modality, challenges and coordination perspectives. It was nice and active interaction among the participants. Lastly, the program was concluded with some of the remarks by the experts and guests.
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