Sri Lanka Field Visit, February / March 2006

Sri Lanka:   Background, Rationale for Show, Development of Tsunami-Awareness Field Test

Field Test Phase

TEAM = Michael Frith, Kathy Mullen, Johnie McGlade, and Just Media team

SRI LANKA, Background

This trip followed on from the No Strings visit to Sri Lanka in July / August 2005, the purpose of which was to identify shortfalls in work being undertaken at that time, to meet and identify local / international NGOs who were willing and able to work with No Strings, and ascertain potential levels of funding.
We identified CRS, one of the major American NGOs based in Baltimore, as a partner to begin work with as they were very enthusiastic and willing to explore the possibilities, pending on the successful outcome of a field test.
What was proposed was to create a video with a live show component which could travel to any area in Sri Lanka, which could be shown and set up outdoors at night and indoors at any time, require a minimal set up personnel, would be highly entertaining, and would teach children (and adults) tsunami-awareness lessons.

Rationale for Show

Traumatised children who experienced the tsunami fear there will be another one. It was very apparent during this latest visit in February / March from discussions with children, teachers and aid workers, that many of them continue to believe it was caused by the weather or as a punishment, etc, that they are ignorant of many aspects of a tsunami, like the fact that there is always more than one wave, and of survival techniques like how to recognise warning signs and where to go for safety.

Development of Tsunami-Awareness Field Test

No Strings then developed a script to address the above problems, and whose overall aim was to reduce levels of fear in tsunami-affected children and help their recovery process.
It was decided the show would be an interactive combination of film, using shadow puppetry, and live puppets and narrator.
The story is about a young sea turtle named Tala, whose little sister is so traumatised after losing most of their family in the tsunami that he embarks on a journey to find out its causes on her behalf.

Field Test

No Strings created two puppet characters, Laloo, a cormorant, who performs a similar function to Jaladul in the Afghan film, and Tala, a sea turtle.
They also made a six-minute film. Much of the action takes place in the film, which means that fewer actors and puppets are required. The film is shown on a large screen. In between the action sequences, a storyteller addresses the audience, and two real puppets pop up from behind the screen, as if flying in and out of the shadow puppet action.
The full version of the show would last approximately 40 minutes. As we were field testing it, we took a 17-minute excerpt, which both introduced the plot and presented some of its key messages. It was also carefully rounded off so they knew that all ended happily.

Field Test Phase

On the arrival of the creative team and documentary crew, the first two days were spent in the New Vision Art Studio where the film element was dubbed. We hired the Colombo-based studio, actors and director for two days.
The studio was more than adequate to facilitate the dubbing, so all went very smoothly. This will obviously be a studio and actors that we will use again in the future.
We were able to identify five actors from an amateur drama group in the Hambantota region in the south of the country. We auditioned and rehearsed with five, and then selected three, alongside an interpreter. The other two we may use in the future as the project is expanded. None of the actors had any English.
As these actors had never worked with puppets before, we spent two-and-a-half days on intensive training and rehearsing intensively. This was the time we had - in normal circumstances you would spend much longer. Training included positioning of the hands and synchronising of voices, amendment of the script to incorporate additional translated material, working with the interactive nature of the video, looking at how to engage the audience, character work and the learning of lines. This all took place in the Hambantota town hall.
We then had a full week of performances in the Hambantota, Matara and Galle areas.
There were 11 performances, which were seen by a total of approximately 1,200 children.
The children were taken through a series of questions at the end of each performance to ascertain their level of understanding. We were also looking for gaps in their knowledge, which were considerable.
We are now awaiting feedback from the field. It was felt that the children needed some time to digest what had been seen, advice we took from teachers, principles and CRS staff. Crucially, the teachers will report back to us on follow-up class discussions.
As the majority of these children were directly affected by the tsunami, we had to progress very sensitively. That said, we were quite overwhelmed by their response. They were clearly gripped by the story itself, and this unique format.
Performing the show in Sinhalese presented considerable difficulties during the training process, but was much better than using a translator as far as the children were concerned.

Next Phase

No Strings has had some very positive feedback from the field, which we are hoping to maximise as quickly as possible and implement the full project. Due to the recent insurgencies in Sri Lanka, this process has been slowed down. It may now be the case that this will be the first of many projects there as we can adapt our work to include issues related to the current situation.

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