Cover Story

Showtime on streets!

 By Aaishah Abu Bakr

Street theatre is probably the oldest form of theatre in existence. The roots of the majority of the mainstream entertainment mediums can be traced back to street performances, including religious passion plays and many other forms. More recently, performers who, a hundred years ago, would have made their living working in variety theatres, music halls and in vaudeville, now often perform professionally in the many well-known street performance areas throughout the world.

What makes it unique?

One of the most interesting aspects of street theatre is its unique socio-political status. People who can't afford to go to actual theatre can watch a street show without paying anything. By virtue of where the shows take place, their audience is made up of anyone and everyone who wants to watch.

As a traditional form

Street theatre as a form of communication is deeply rooted in Pakistan. Its most striking feature and the one that sets it apart from commercial theatre is that it breaks the formal barriers and approaches the people directly. It has been used to propagate social and political messages and to create awareness amongst the masses regarding many issues like health, education, political issues etc.

Where can you find it?

You can see them at the most unexpected places -- behind the vegetable complex in your marketplace, during your evening walk, at the bus stop, in the buses or perhaps even on the street in front of your workplace -- a group of people, acting out a short skit or a play, for anyone who might wish to stop and watch.

A means of socio-political activism

Street performers are not merely philanthropists providing free entertainment; for them, this is a means of reaching out to people belonging to all strata and creating an awareness of events around them, calling them to change what they believe are the social ailments. These are the street theatre 'activists'.

Apart from propagating social reforms, street theatre is also a political weapon used during elections in particular or to get across an ideology. It has also been successfully utilised as a vehicle for inducing a scientific outlook in some people by bringing to them news from the world of science. Women issues have become an important theme for street plays. For example, once a rape case instigated a lot of plays on the need to make the rape laws more stringent. There have been several productions summarizing the life of a woman in Pakistan and some have gone on to make the girl question her ability to lead a purposeful life by herself.

The need for street theatre

In Pakistan, two forms of theatre have existed till now --  the sophisticated urban theatre borrowed from the British and rooted in western culture and values and the traditional rural theatre. In spite of the tremendous popularity of folk theatre in rural areas, the ideas and values it deals with remain backward, whereas the urban theatre propagate progressive ideas and values to a sophisticated audience which can mentally stimulate them at the most but cannot be acted upon. Therefore, street theatre, which is sometimes referred to as the third theatre, fulfils the need for a means of communication which would break barriers of stage and ticketed entries.

Street theatre with a difference

However, it would be wrong to claim that street theatre is a new form -- its content and style may be new - but snake charmers, bear and monkey dances on the street and also short dance and acrobatic sequences at fairs by trained performers are all some or the other forms of street theatre. But the primary aim of this type of theatre is to get money from the show.

How are the plays prepared?

The preparation for the play is a joint effort. Each member has to agree completely on the theme for a production to go through. The script is usually written jointly as the play progresses.

A 'dholak' or choral song is used to attract people and once a large enough crowd is gathered, the play is performed with the audience standing all around. The chorus sings or speaks out the script. Sometimes one person narrates while the actors mime. No make-up is used unless miming is the medium. Then the face is painted white and the eyes an exaggerated black to highlight expressions. If the audience is very large and one person alone has to speak, a mike is used.

Who are the actors?

Street theatre actors are mainly teachers and students committed to bringing about social change. Their returns in terms of finances or fame are nil. The time that this form of theatre demands is considerable. All evenings and weekends are spent rehearsing or performing. In fact, Sajjan Yaar, a street theatre actor, was not able to attend the reception of his son's wedding because he had an important rehearsal to attend. "My son understood that. We become social outcasts but for us it is an addiction," he explains.

If you talk about street theatre actors, it is mandatory to mention Gul Zaman Orakzai. Originally a stage actor, he moved on to street theatre adopting it as a cause, bringing about social and political awareness. His message obviously hit home for while performing a play in a small town of NWFP, he and his group were attacked. He succumbed to his injuries a day later.

Importance of body language

Normally, the audience of street theatres doesn't come prepared to watch a play, and people may not have much time on hand. These limitations determine the parameters of the plays. They are short. The exchange is close, direct and intimate and, to be more effective, usually loud and larger than life. The script and direction is always significant. In order to draw crowds from all walks of life and to maintain their interest in the play, they are usually written in a humorous way. Songs based on popular and catchy tunes are included to add to the play's appeal. The choreography varies from script to script. The play must be as inexpensive and mobile as possible, since no stage props can be used. As Qaisir Roonjha, a young and emerging playwright sums up: "The essential tool of the trade is the human body, its potential; especially the ability to speak so loud that 4000 people can hear you even if you are not using a mike."

The impact

There have been several plays exposing the mechanism of black marketing and hoarding. Some talk of the use of political power for pressurising people. Others highlight caste conflicts or ideas about hygiene and health. Street theatre is also used as a means to encourage literacy amongst villagers. One effective play on environment projected a beautiful relationship of trust and friendship between a little boy and a tree.

But do these plays bring about a change? According to Feisal who works with a local street theatre group in Thatta, "It all depends on the communication; the way a message has been sent across. If the communication is strong, it does result in some tangible impact. What is important is that the play makes the people think. Usually, street theatre is seen by many people of different age groups who then question and discuss the contents of the play. This evocation of questioning is by itself an impact." Feisal recalled an interesting experience he had while travelling by a local village bus. He was very surprised to hear a passenger singing a song from one of his street plays. "At an unconscious level at least, the message had got across." He claims that many times, the audience come up to the members of a street theatre to discuss the play they have just seen.

For Sajjan Yaar and his group the reward for their tireless efforts came in a different way. While touring different villages in the NWFP, they came across audiences willing to sit through a performance in any kind of weather. He recalls one night when they performed through a continuous drizzle interspersed with heavy showers. So enraptured was the audience that about 3000 people sat through the play for about three hours. Finally, when the shower came down heavily, Sajjan called it a day and begged his audience to leave. That they were interested enough to sit through the rain meant that the message was getting across.

Famous street theatre groups in Pakistan

Dabistan-e-Fun is a theatre group based in Karachi and its mission is to promote human rights and social change in a critical way.

In Pakistan, working on issues like HIV/AIDS, Reproductive and Sexual Health is very difficult. Strict cultural and social norms don't allow discussing such issues. The first case of HIV/AIDS was diagnosed in 1987 and after that the government established centres at provincial level to work against the spread of HIV/AIDS through raising awareness and building capacity of the local NGOs. TB is another major disease; especially in remote areas of Pakistan where many people are infected with TB. Rasti is an NGO working in the field of HIV/AIDS for the last seven years. Rasti chose street theatre as an effective tool to promote awareness among people about these issues. Up till now Rasti has produced and performed six different plays on HIV/AIDS in urban and rural settlements throughout Pakistan. These plays talk about addiction, family planning, decision-making, TB and HIV/AIDS. The plays are developed after considering social and cultural norms and are well composed with songs and props. Indus Theater Group was established in 2002. It has been working under the vision of a society in which every person knows and understands his/her right/s, issues, challenges and makes conscious efforts for solving them, to the best of his/her capacity.

Different groups have varying aims. The AMAL theatre group in Lasbela, Balochistan for example performs plays on awareness related to Tuberculosis and mother and infant health. AMAL which is a short form of Active Motivated Acerbic League was formed by Qaisir Roonjha -- a student of intermediate and is the only theatre group in Lasbela. Qaisir says, "I started this group because I was deeply saddened by the lack of awareness in my area. Numerous seminars and conferences have been organized in Lasbela in the past, but none seem to have an impact because people learn more by watching and interacting than by being fed with long speeches. Street theatre, I realised, was the key." AMAL initially produced plays to create awareness about Gutka that was being excessively used by the youth in Lasbela. When Qaisir and his troupe got a positive response and their theatre started gaining popularity, many international NGOs working in Balochistan contacted them to produce plays for them.

Ajoka, Ayaz and Rafi Peer Theatre in Lahore organise plays on social issues.