For the opening festival from the “cinema jenin” in august 2010, we are planning a small theatre play which should be performed in the cinema!

In Summer 2008, in the Cuneo Center in the Jenin Refugee camp, me and Ziad Bakri decided to start the first theatre workshop with children from the camp. When we arrived Ismael, had already collected a group of actors who were joining in a mask workshop. Ziad was by my side to translate. You could feel that he also loves children a lot which is very important anyway…

First the children had to try how to behave with the mask. Put on, move little, say hallo to the audience, turn around, that was it…After the introduction we were looking for small biography for each mask, man or woman, age, profession, dreaming about…, bad in, doing very well.., have a secret….! After this we tried to connect different characters and find small stories which could happen in a cinema! This was really funny…someone who couldn`t find his seat…a stolen ticket …someone big took place in front of a smaller person…and finally a man who fell asleep in the cinema,…men beside him trying to wake him up, he refused again and again, fell asleep on the shoulder of his neighbour, on the knee, and when the man beside him left, he fell down to the floor and went on sleeping…(Mohammad and Shadi!!!!)

Also it was very hot, killing every sense, the actors were amazing…thanks a lot for the trust and “suffering” behind the mask! Thanks a lot to Ziad, for all his patience!
The workshop lasted one week. Day after day more kids and youth joined us. We didn`t close the door because you need all the actors at the end, you don’t know who will stay and join in the festival…

Annette Burchard for Cinema Jenin, August 2008