Seventeen seniors were on Friday awarded with certificates after they completed a five-day workshop on Puppetry Design and Performance, aimed at building capacity in live show production.
Merundoi Incorporated, under the auspices of the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), collaborated with the unit of the Allied Arts, Ministries of Education, Social Cohesion and Social Protection, the National School of Theatre Arts and the 60+ Blazers Club to host the workshop.
The workshop, which is the first of four scheduled, commenced on June 10th and concluded on Friday. It, along with the presentation ceremony, was held at the Catholic Life Centre, located on Brickdam.
The objective of the project is to build the capacity of specific populations, such as the elderly and youths, victims of Trafficking in Persons, teachers, social workers, counsellors and performing artistes, in the field of puppet making and manipulations, script writing and producing live shows.
Each of the participants received a certificate, marking successful completion of the programme.
As part of the presentation, the group showcased the skills they acquired during the workshop. They displayed the puppets that they made and entertained the audience with dramatic performances before they received their certificates.
According to one of the facilitators, Michael Khan, he was surprised at the enthusiasm of the seniors, who made every effort to attend the workshop on a daily basis. Khan, who teaches puppetry at the University of Guyana and Cyril Potter College, told this newspaper that he is very pleased that Merundoi has taken the initiative to use puppetry as a method for social change. He related that they are planning to do more workshops with HIV counsellors, teachers, among others, in an effort to change society.
