We do not know what children will need, we do not know what the world will be like when they cross the threshold of adulthood and have to live independently, make decisions and shape their destiny – their own and that of a wider community. "It is a responsibility to something that is not known in advance, so it is to some extent a responsibility without knowing what the outcome will be" (Barle Lakota, 2010: 220).
The theatre also refers to the future, foreboding and longing, a desire to transcend the known. The theatre wants to influence the people and society. "I think that the theatre always 'reveals' what is most lacking in real-time, what is most deficient. The theatre – the mirror of ‘the present generation and being of the world' does not show its 'form', but calls it, seduces it into a 'form' that ‘the present generation does not possess" (Šeligo, 1989: 108).
The tasks of the theatre and the teacher seem to be closely connected and intertwined when we talk about their roles in the shaping of a Human being. They share the stimulation of thinking, the rich world of experience brought about by involvement in the process of learning or performing – and the means of transmitting messages – this inner substance that passes into a person from birth – the language. “The language is one of the most sensitive expressions of our existence. It is like a litmus paper that sensitively perceives all changes in the humanity of a man, his sociability, changes in his attitude towards himself, others, and the natural and social environment” (Barle Lakota, 2010: 214).
The teacher prepares the students for an active and responsible attitude toward the world (e.g., Barle Lakota, 2010). Future adults will only be able to make this extremely important transition if they have a solid core of confidence in themselves and others.
The Punch and Judy Show has always accompanied people and dealt with topics relevant to a particular period. The Show has always been on the side of the humiliated from the social bottom. Its core and essence, the substance from which it has created and continues to create Punch's world – often violent and chaotic – is the unjust world. The Punch and Judy Show illuminates the levers of power and caricatures them, which is experienced as an anarchic, indomitable, disrespectful, and above all, a liberating force.
Punch reflects the time. Today we need committed, empathetic and courageous young people with an affection for nature, society, community and solidarity; we need people who are led by conscience and the common good. Teachers’ responsibility is to help shape children’s active and responsible attitude towards the world through their example, actions and thinking. Avoiding hard things is much easier, but not in favour of children. S. Žižek (2020: 26) points to this: “The purpose of education is no longer sobering up when we are enabled to deal with social reality – and when we are told that this security prevents mental breakdowns, we should respond with the exact opposite statement: because of such false security we are exposed to mental crises when we have to deal with our social reality.”
A school year was dedicated to the Punch and Judy Show. We aimed to experience it holistically, to understand the messages of the dramatic characters to whom we allowed to express their truth, and to indulge in their intimate worlds by playing scenes. We focused on the issues of the rules, relationships, and roles that we play in the family as well as in the community. We realized that the future is shaped by our past and present actions, but not fatally; we can act differently if recurring patterns hurt us.
If life is a stage, then the theatre is a space for experiencing different roles, choices, and actions. It is a space of reflection, of encounters with the Other, which reveals his/her world and affects yours at the same time. Hence the decision for the theatre, for the dramatic expression. That is why we have introduced the ancient ‘clown’, the interrogator and initiator of new ideas in the present time. We were encouraged to try new ideas and to reflect on our actions. With the help of a puppet, we tried to pave our way to the Human who feels anchored in his/her community, with his/her value and place under the sun.
|
