Rethinking and Creating Theater’s Facilities for Children
Performing the Cloud Play in Ankara and the Earthquake Region
October 2023 - March 2024
ANKARA, HATAY, KAHRAMANMARAŞ, ADIYAMAN, GAZİANTEP, MALATYA
The project involves free performances of ‘Bulut’ (The Cloud), a theater play for early age (2 to 7) children in socio-economically disadvantaged areas of Ankara (Mamak, Yenimahalle, Sincan, Keçiören, Altındağ and Etimesgut) as well as in cities suffered from the earthquake on 6 February 2023 (Malatya, Gaziantep, Hatay, Kahramanmaraş, Adıyaman). The goal of the project is to perform the play to children who have not yet been introduced to theater and its infinite world, and who have also suffered psychological trauma because of the earthquake. Cloaud is a play created and performed by Kaşif Kumpanya. The play lasts for 35 to 45 minutes depending on the age group. It tells the story of a cloud who cannot graduate from the Cloud Academy because it is unable to perform natural phenomena such as lightning and rain, and its process of finding itself. It eventually realizes that it is a Dreamer Cloud, so it joins the Ministry of Dreams to find unhappy clouds and make them smile by making them dream. However, all clouds learn how to dream and nobody stops by the Ministry anymore. So, the Dreamer Cloud descends to the earth and tries to find itself a job. This quest does not go well. In the end, it arrives at a deserted and barren village. A frog it’d meet in this village would cause it to feel the rain in it for the first time and help it to create rain. The play utilizes narration, physical theater techniques and shadow puppets. In addition, as a theater performance for early-age children, it makes use of audience interaction and multi-sensory stimulation.
