Report – 2nd Tamasha Festival 2019

2nd Tamasha Festival #TAMASHA19
Presented by ASSITEJ Pakistan in collaboration with Institute for Arts and Culture (IAC)
12-14 April 2019
Institute for Arts and Culture (IAC), Lahore

Opening

The opening ceremony was held on 12th April 2019 in which the guest speakers and hosts such as Tashfeen Safdar (Minister), Pervaiz Vandal (Pro VC IAC), Bina Jawwad (Teacher and Dancer), Shoaib Iqbal (ASSITEJ Pakistan President) and Niclas Malmcrona (ASSITEJ Sweden President) officially opened the 2nd Tamasha festival 2019. One child violin artist opened the house by playing the national anthem. The opening ceremony was further illuminated by the performance of the choir team of Institute of Art and Culture.

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Audiences

We were truly astonished by the response we got from our audiences for 2nd Tamasha Festival.

Seeing every single show that we presented housefull, we are confident that people will keep coming if we present quality theater and performing arts to them.

We had children, youth, families, students, artists and general public pouring in during the 3 days of the Tamasha.

Total attendances: 9013

Presented;
– 11 Theater, Dance and Music Performances by Professional Groups
– 17 Theater Performances by Schools
– 3 Workshops by international and national master trainers
– 1 Musical Concert
– 2 International Performances by professional groups

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Day 1

The first day had two major performances, one was presented by Maas foundation was a non-verbal theatre performance which highlighted the sensitive relationship between children and parents and how child is affected by mother and father’s relationship.

Niclas Malmcrona (ASSITEJ Sweden President); “I was highly impressed by the performance and liked how all the actors were deeply immersed into their roles.”

Second performance called “Wake-up Twistland” was performed by Ninedu Shanghai Theater Company from China. It was also non-verbal theatre performance, where the backdrop and the props used during the play were colorful and vibrant which involved a lot of children and young people. The play also engaged children in the performance, inviting them to be part of it while calling them on stage.

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Day 2

Second day was more busy and intense as the performances started from afternoon till late at night. Viewing the venue and festival with an eye of public felt amazing. One could see volunteers wearing their name tags escorting guests towards main auditorium, photography team was not missing a single sight to capture, and one could see smiles on the faces of children, youth and families. 
17 schools performed at festival including Lahore Grammer School, The Educators, House of Junior School and Government School for Special Education. “Hathi ka Bacha” a storytelling performance by Sadia Sarmed was being watched by children and teenagers. There was a open mic session to encourage participation of small singing and dancing acts.

The Festival also hosted a concert of Badnaam band in the evening, which pulled large crowds.

Performance by Yun Hyejin from South Korea, playing her traditional instrument called Gayageum was enjoyed by a lot of people. It was a unique feeling to watch something you have never seen from a person who doesn’t even speak your language but still can convey their message by the language of love.

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Day 3

Beaconhouse Newlands performance enlightened the audience on bullying. Upon interviewing a mother of two children regarding the feedback of play, she commented that “I was literally stunned to see how bullying jeopardize a child’s mental health”, she added that this play was beautifully depicted and created awareness among mothers and families about bullying and mental health.”

IAC theatre society performed their comedy play, Rail-Away Station, which was a house full show and the audience had a good time laughing and giggling. Other performances included Masty Family by APS (Azam Garrison), Laikhak (Journey of a Writer) by Uminite Production, Bhageshree Tarana in Jhap Taal and Fusion by Sunaina Khan which gave a chance to young artist not only to perform but to invite their families to watch. The festival team felt honored when a trans-gender artists Sunaina Khan performed at the festival and received standing ovation at the hall.

The last performance was named ‘Rang-Kainat’ by Bina Jawwad. This performance was a collective and directed by Bina Jawwad and performed by Harsakhiyan (Ismet Jawwad, Zainab Jawwad, Saleema Jawwad), Adnan Jahangir, Nighat Chaodhry and other renowned artists.

Families including grandmother and grandfather coming to watch plays of their children was a heartwarming sight. It tells how art and culture can play a role to build a sense of community, and children and youth can follow their passion of working in the arts.

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Badnaam Concert Curated by rearts

13th April evening was all about sufi-pop music, and the concert at Tamasha Festival was curated by rearts. Badnaam rocked the show while pulling large crowds and celebration that went late to the night.

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In the Press

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