development cooperation

I have, together with dramaturg Titta Halinen, carried out theater-related development cooperation projects in Nairobi from 2010 to 2011 (Q Plays for Kibera) and from 2014 to 2016 (Girls’ Turn). These projects were funded by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs for civil society organizations. In both projects, we collaborated with organizations from Kibera as well as Sarakasi Trust. Additionally, in 2017, we received a small personal mobility grant from the Arts Promotion Centre Finland, which allowed us to conduct a workshop lasting just over a week, during which we created a performance based on Otso Kauto’s play, ‘Saving Mama from the Blue.’ This enabled us to maintain connections with the youth who had participated in the previous projects. The aim of our work has been to teach fundamental theater and performance skills and to strengthen their participation as members of their community.

The workshops involved girls aged 13 to 17 who lived in the nearby slums. Through theater, we addressed the challenges of adolescent girls growing into adulthood (such as sexual education, gender identity, and equality). We created a version of Cinderella adapted to Nairobi’s lifestyle with the girls. The performance was presented in Kibera (Nairobi’s largest slum). The following year (2015), the youth brought their own texts, and we built a performance called ‘My Story’ based on them. In the final year (2016), we adapted Chekhov’s ‘Three Sisters’ into a performance. This performance was presented at the Sarakasi Cultural Center in Nairobi.

Unfortunately, despite numerous applications, we have not yet secured continued funding for our project. In recent years, development cooperation policies have significantly reduced funding, particularly in the fields of culture and education.