Summer Fun Weeks – 2015

After reading a poem called “Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird” by Wallace Stevens, Jackie Lubeck came up with the idea of “Ten Ways to Know Us” which is a research on how Palestinian kids and drama teachers, and directors, would like to talk about Palestine from ten different points of view. Ten themes were chosen and were worked into scenes for a project of the same name (See “Ten Ways to Know Us.” For the summer games of 2015, we turned six of the scenes into plays which were shown to 150,000 school children throughout the summer. The plays are (1) “Three Birds” (2) “Snow Trip” (3) “One Thousand Questions (4) “The Boys Who Can’t Sit Still” (5) “Between the Sea and the Desert” and (6) The Boys in the Mirror

The Boys Who Can’t Still
 

Written by Jackie Lubeck
Directed by Mohammed Awaida & Said Al Khawaldeh

Mustafa, Noor, and Ali are brothers. It’s summer, they are bored, and they take to the school yard in search of something to do. But there is nothing to do and as they search for patience, they are taken over by dance and running. Their first distraction is the unexpected visit of their fun-loving but out-of-work father who offers laughter but not much else. Soon there is a Selma, their talented aunt who always has a game for them to play. And then comes their completely confused Grandfather who carries his house in a huge bag and setting up sleeping space for the tired. The last guest to this world is the grandmother, who remembers what it’s like to be beautiful and in love with the now crazy Grandfather. She remembers when women wore short skirts in Gaza. “You come into life crying and fighting and that’s how it stays… in between you have moments.” The whole day has been a series of moments for the brothers and in the end, resting on the lap of their loving grandmother, they are all completely still.

 The Actors

The play was made by 4 different groups of actors performing simultaneously in different locations.

Group 1 – Ahmed Al Aydi, Saed Al Khawalda, Ala Al Ouli, Sami Abu Skhail

Group 2 – Ameen Al Najjar, Ameen Al Akhrass, Mohammed Jaber, Mohammed Abu Salama

Group 3 – Mohammed Al Barrawi, Emad Al Khawalda, Mahmoud Al Sayed, Fadi Abu Yasin, Eyad Al Belbaisi

Group 4 – Samed Al Raai, Obaida Jaber, Ramez Nassar, Ahmed Ewaida

 TDP Production

Artistic Supervision and Direction – Rafat Al Aydeh, Mohammed Al Hissi & Jan Willems

Administration – Amal Abu Dawood, Rami Hijjo, Maryam Enaia, Tania Mourtaja, Doaa Abo Abdo, Rania Shawwa, Henriette Araman, Anan Terhi, & Francis Tams

Technicians – Riyad Al Akras, Ahmad Qadada, Ashraf Sirhan, & Mohsein Abu El Kheer