Theatre personality Prasanna said here on Sunday, September 24, that theatre education enriches learning and was an important component in the personality development of children and hence should be part of the curriculum.
He was speaking at the valedictory of the national children’s theatre festival at Kirurangamandira in Mysuru city.
Mr. Prasanna said every school and Anganwadi should have theatre education as part of the curriculum as it was theatre alone which enlivened learning and make it more meaningful. He said the demand for theatre education was not something new and it was already accepted in the educational system but what was lacking was the implementation part.
‘’The educational policies of the country acknowledges the benefits of theatre but what is lacking is its implementation because the bureaucracy was oblivious of it,” said Mr. Prasanna. In some quarters the very thought of introducing theatre education is sniggered and considered vulgar by officials, he added.
Mr. Prasanna said theatre preceded all art forms and it was the basis for a child to feel, dance and sing. Earlier, a group of children marched to the stage and submitted a list of demands that called for protecting their childhood and ensure that it was not sacrificed at the altar of ‘’learning’’.
The national festival was organised by the Indian Institute of Educational Theatre from September 19 to 24 and featured plays performed by adults for children and also plays performed by children for children.
There was also a conference on educational theatre besides exchange of ideas on children’s literature. The drama festival was held simultaneously in theatres of Kirurangmandira, Rangayana’s Bhoomigeeta and at Natana.
Theatre troupes, theatre experts and special representatives from different parts of the country were invited for the festival the objective of which was to protect the child’s sensitivity and joy of learning. The organisers said this aspect was in the present times marred by the extreme book load, test load, and over-intellectual pressure that have plagued the education sector.
