Palestinian children’s theater inspires U.S. audiences

The young actors, dancers and singers of Al-Rowwad Palestinian Children’s Theater visited New Jersey and New York June 17-22 as part of a U.S. tour that also includes stops in Connecticut, Vermont and Louisville, Ky.

A new generation takes up the Palestinian cause.

Al-Rowwad center in the Aida camp was founded and is directed by Dr. Abdel Fattah Abu Srour. It consists of an arts, theater and cultural center for children. It also houses a computer center and a library. Abu Srour wrote and directed “We are the Children of the Camps,” the play performed by the children of Al-Rowwad during their tour.

Performed in Arabic with English subtitles developed for the U.S. tour projected behind the actors, this play tells stories of exile and expresses the commitment of a new generation of Palestinian refugees to return to their homes and lands, and to struggle for freedom.

The young Palestinians play and laugh until their joy is broken by the Nakba—”the catastrophe”—of 1948 and their expulsion from Palestine. One by one, the characters recount the destroyed villages of Palestine. Then they face the audience in unison, shouting the names of the villages destroyed by Zionist occupation.

Al-Rowwad were met with great enthusiasm at all four of their area performances. Beginning with their opening performance on June 18 at the Passaic County Technical Institute in Wayne, N.J., at a show sponsored by New Jersey Solidarity-Activists for the Liberation of Palestine and the Palestinian American Congress-New Jersey Chapter, the children of Al-Rowwad delighted and inspired their audience, who cheered and clapped at images of resistance and the young actors’ portrayal of Palestinian courage, strength and dedication to return to their land.

The warm reception for Al-Rowwad’s performance continued on June 20 at the Barrow Street Theater in New York’s Greenwich Village. Theater-goers welcomed the performance and again generously supported the group’s fundraising efforts.

The following night saw a sold-out performance at the CUNY Graduate Center’s intimate Martin E. Segal Theater.

Their final performance on June 22, sponsored by Al-Awda New York, brought the young performers to Brooklyn’s Al-Noor School. They were greeted by a large and enthusiastic crowd in the Islamic school’s auditorium, who again contributed generously to Al-Rowwad’s fundraising to expand their center in Aida camp.

Through song, dance and performance, the young actors of Al-Rowwad not only portray the tragedies of the past and present, but continue to express their dedication to struggle, their strength and connection to Palestine, and their unbreakable commitment and hope to return to their homes and liberate their land.

Al-Rowwad’s time in New York City was arranged by an ad hoc committee of theater activists from Theaters Against War and Nibras, an Arab American theater group, as well as Palestinian and Palestine solidarity activists from a variety of organizations. All came together to raise funds for Al-Rowwad’s visit to the New York/New Jersey area and plan housing, meals and activities for the actors and staff of Al-Rowwad during their visit.

Activities Coordinator Ibrahim Abu Srour and Stage Manager Amal Asad, a graduate of the Al-Rowwad program, along with Dr. Abu Srour, accompanied the Al-Rowwad cast—11 boys and girls chosen from the dozens who work on art, theater and dance at the center.

Husam Alazza, Ribal Kordi, Hammad Anwar, Rawa Abu-Srour, Salam Alazza, Hamada Alkurdi, Woud Darkhawaja, Ikhlas Abu-Srour, Ahmad Alajarma, Jehad Alajarma, and Hanin Alaarj made up the cast who traveled to the U.S.

Thousands of dollars were raised for Al-Rowwad during their New York/New Jersey tour, and their success promises to continue in Connecticut, Vermont and Kentucky. Plans for them to return to the U.S. next summer for another tour are already being discussed.

Charlotte Kates is an activist with New Jersey Solidarity-Activists for the Liberation of Palestine and Al-Awda New York.