[afro-nets] Health - Peace - Storytelling

[Janet Feldman <kaippg@earthlink.net>]

Health, Peace, Storytelling: Puppetry Workshop/Lecture Tour
Booking Now!
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International Workshop & Lecture Tour for Europe, Canada, and
the United States: Please BOOK NOW!!

Contact Gary Friedman, Gary Friedman Productions
mailto:info@puppetrynews.com

http://www.africanpuppet.com


In 2005, Gary Friedman conducted an international tour, bringing
the world of puppetry, objects, and paper to high school and
university students. Participants were given the opportunity to
explore their creativity using the most unlikely of media and
create short theatrical pieces. In 2007, Friedman will be joined
by therapist, Sharon Gelber, touring schools and universities
throughout Europe, Canada, and the United States.

Short Workshops: (Three hours to One Day)

1) A Paper Meditation Workshop, which takes a practical hands-on
and experiential format, where participants express themselves
and communicate through the medium of paper 2) Object
Improvisation Workshop: participants choose objects that appeal
to them, and then in groups explore the hidden possibilities of
their objects 3) Hand and Ball Exercises ­ Beginning Puppetry.

Specialized Workshops: (One or Two Days)

1) Telling the Stories: Playback Puppetry
This is a full-day or two-day workshop, providing a safe
platform for participants to tell their stories and deal with
their life-issues. The medium of paper and objects are used to
convey the message. Drama therapy techniques and theatre games
encourage the groups to choose meaningful stories to tell. The
divided groups come together at various stages to present their
short performances to the entire group. This allows discussion
of the issues and conflicts which have emerged, with
possibilities and options for resolution.

2) The Language of Conflict and Language of Peace
In a world that is governed by the language of war, fear, drugs,
AIDS, violence and reconciliation, we are offering a workshop to
explore these themes in a practical and creative space, the
objective of which is to provide a safe environment to voice
opinions on sensitive issues. The medium of paper and objects
will be explored as our theatrical tool. Puppetry has always
been used to provoke an audience into facing these challenging
issues. The groups come together at various stages to present
their piece to the whole group, discussing the issues, which
have emerged with possibilities and options for a change of
perception.

Lectures: Demos which take the form of an interactive
discussion, with audio-visual examples on each topic (Lectures
can vary from 60 to 90 minutes each)

1) History and Traditions of World Puppetry
The history of the world's oldest art form didn't start as an
art. From the religious to the political function, from the
social and educative function to modern entertainment, we will
discover how puppetry has always played a role in world culture,
from early history until today.

2) Puppetry in Education and Development
Puppetry has been used to communicate social, health, and
development issues to communities all over the world. In this
workshop, Friedman will discuss some of the projects he has been
involved in throughout Africa, Europe, North America, Australia,
as well as in many island communities, to put across difficult
and culturally sensitive issues and messages related to
HIV/AIDS, corruption, drugs, sex education and abuse. Many of
the projects were filmed and he will show short video clips and
explain how these were implemented.

3) Puppetry in Therapy
Puppetry has been used to resolve conflict, assist in delving
into pscho-socio trauma and role play in pscho-drama for many
years. We will discuss some of the techniques used and their
benefits to the patient and society.

4) Puppetry on Television
Puppetry for television takes us into an entirely different
world to live theatre. The Muppets and Sesame Street are
probably the best known examples where puppetry has been used
successfully on television. But there are many others! We start
to understand the complex world of television and how the
audience can be easily tricked by the camera. We will show
examples of television puppetry from around the world and
discuss the techniques used.

5) Brain Gym: "Learn to Move, Move to Learn"
This lecture outlines the basic concepts behind what makes a
"good learner", describes the stress response, and discusses the
results of stress in our body and its effects on learning. This
is the background to understanding how movement and "Brain Gym"
in particular is so powerful in relaxing and activating the
brain and body and priming the system for optimal learning. The
bulk of the lecture consists of practical tools which can be
used by learners of all ages (children and adults) to decrease
stress, and improve focus, organisation, and communication in
the brain; as well as activate the eyes for improved reading and
comprehension, and ears for optimal listening.

For more information and bookings, please contact Gary Friedman
at mailto:info@puppetrynews.com

NEW PUPPETRY FILMS WEBCAST LIVE

Our puppetry films are finally being webcast live, thanks to
Google Video. The first short film to be made available online
is 'Puppets in Prison'. The entire series of films are listed
here under PUPPETRY FILMS LIVE WEBCAST in the right-hand column:
http://africanpuppet.blogspot.com/2006/10/new-puppetry-films-webcast-live.html