De-Dramatisation

"I don't know" and "I can't" are frequent responses when we set an artistic challenge in schools. Many students are convinced that creation is reserved for artists and professionals. Culturally, in India and Nepal, art is seen as a superior practice. Most people feel their role is one of appreciation and that - because they lack mastery, perfection, years of practice - they have no place in the creation of a work of art. Art is far removed from everyday life and, when we made artistic proposals to the students, they copied models from well-known references. We believe this cultural chasm is due to the fact that Portugal has been living in a democracy for longer, without strong hierarchies such as the caste system, and people are less afraid of making mistakes and experimenting. Tension leads to blockage. One of the tactics we’ve used to combat this difficulty is to de-dramatize artistic creation, to remove the negative tension from the artistic act, the drama and the weight of that experience. How can the artistic act become an everyday experience? We've tried to open up paths of accessibility that shorten the relationship between art and life. We wanted to bring these two axes closer together and imbue everyday life with artistic practices to which all participants would have access. To do this, we used many traditional references, accessible to most people, and later transformed them into new works. It’s also through joy and laughter that this process of de-dramatization takes place - as was the case with the rehearsals with the adults for the first performance in which laughter and happiness emerged from mistakes and forgetfulness. Our practice is inspired by informality and the participants often created or danced without realizing they were doing so. Starting with challenging choreographic games, the teenagers ended up dancing within these challenges, sliding into artistic practice naturally. De-dramatization happens in a variety of ways. Rani, an Indian girl, wouldn't take part in the Curry Kingdom dance during rehearsals for fear of not understanding its meaning. We explained to her that it was a dance made up of movements of work, exemplifying each one. What was at first abstract became understandable and enjoyable. The costumes used in both performances came from the participants' own wardrobes: saris, veils, oriental shirts, turbans, etc. Mothers allowed their children to take even the most valuable clothing from home because of the relationship of trust that had been established with the project. These very important clothes became objects of sharing, spread out on the floor to be tried on and worn. There was a de-dramatization of the clothes as well as of the dances.