Creative Europe
Desk UK
for Culture

THIRD COUNTRY COOPERATION PROJECTS WITH ARMENIA, BELARUS, EGYPT, GEORGIA, JORDAN, MOLDOVA, OCCUPIED PALESTINIAN TERRITORY AND TUNISIA

BABY LION IN JORDAN

Children’s Museum, Jordan, Amman; Wadi Rum; Disi Village; Rum Village; Kaber Amrah Bedu Camp

The centrepiece of the Baby Lion EU Culture programme featured children, young people, professional artists, dancers, musicians, actors, acrobats, technicians and from UK, Italy, Finland, Portugal, Slovenia and Jordan in laboratories, workshops, performances, seminars in selected venues around Jordan including Aqaba, Amman and Wadi Rum Protected Area. Following preparatory meetings in Amman, Wadi Rum and Aqaba in April 2010 the laboratory, fieldwork and workshop stages of the programme took place in October and November with follow up workshops in early 2011 and performances and workshops at Children’s Museum Jordan in October 2011

Laboratories

In these, we developed material suitable for performances with and for children without using spoken language that could be performed anywhere, including on sand, without sound or light equipment. We also explored traditional children’s games from cultures of participating countries.

Workshops

The workshop programme was launched in Amman with an integrated project for local children, including a group of recently orphaned refugees from the Gaza Strip. As elsewhere in the Jordanian element of programme, two things were immediately apparent: the impressive energy of the children along with their preference for working in single sex groups. A racous version of the Samoan Fa’ataupati dance routine was performed for the general public in the Children’s Museum.

In Wadi Rum the workshops took place in three venues, Rum Village School, an all-girls’s school inside the Protected Area, an after school mixed group in a Kaber Amrah Bedu Camp and a mixed school in Disi Village just outside the Protected Area.

The programme

▪ contributed to the Awareness Programme for Bedu Children in Wadi Rum Protected Area through the provision of workshops, performances and educational materials

▪ http://www.wadirum.jo/library/rum%20reports/mangsec23.htm

▪ strengthened the Wadi Rum Protected Area bid to UNESCO for World Heritage Status, by raising international awareness of the cultural significance of Bedu traditons as Living Heritage; currently on the tentative list http://whc.unesco.org/en/tentativelists/5101/ www.aqabazone.com/?q=node/529

BABY LION IN FINLAND

The taster sessions in Finland introduced the work of the Flying Gorillas and EU Culture Programme to Saara Alakorva from Sami Parliament and various distinct groups of Sami Youth: Skolt Sami in Sevettijärvi introduced the group to traditional YOIKING, BONE GAMES and SQUARE DANCES; Enare or Inari Sami host the most important festival Ijahis Idja (Nightless Night) in Inari. Despite the temperature of -42 degrees, the welcome was warm and exchanges cordial.

Thanks to the support and vision of artistic director Anna Nakkalajarvi, the fieldwork programme was celebrated at the Ijahis Idja (Nightless Night) Festival in the Summer of 2011. A group of artists recruited through the laboratory process, which included dancers, musicians, actors and aerialists from Finland, Italy, UK and Slovenia ran public workshops and performances at outdoor venues in Inari and Riutala. Other artists in the Festival included Jegor Laptander; Niila Holmberg & Roope Maenpaa; Eatnama Jienat-Voices if the Earth; Igor Koshkendi; The Slap; Toto; Wimme; Slincraze and Solby. Press coverage was excellent, including television broadcasts in Norwegian, Finnish and Sami languages (Viewable on http://www.nrk.no/nett-tv/klipp/778035/ ) Feedback was also excellent, both young people and administrators observing that many people wish to travel to Lapland to observe and learn from the Sami culture but few people bring any of their own culture in exchange.

Photography: Tiago Oliveira

Personnel

EU

Nigel Warrack (UK ), Company Secretary, The Flying Gorillas. London Contemporary Dance School; Senior Lecturer, Middlesex University, UK.

Susana Garcia (Italy), Artistic Director, The Flying Gorillas. Tango Argentina, Buenos Aires; Lecturer, Middlesex University.

Edwin Lung (UK), Associate Artist, The Flying Gorillas. Laban School of Dance, UK ; Expo 2010 Shanghai

Marjo Kiukaanniemi (Finland ), Associate Artist, The Flying Gorillas. Madetoja Music school, Oulu, Finland

Anze Krec (Slovenia) Aerial artist and workshop leader

Ursa Strukelj (Slovenia) Aerial artist and workshop leader

Tamzen Moulding (UK ), Associate Artist, The Flying Gorillas. British Olympic Gymnastic Squad

Tiago D’Oliveira, (Portugal ) Cameras and IT documentation

Jordan

Nisreen Harram, Director, CMJ. EU Nominated partner

Dina Abu Hamden, Culture Officer, CMJ, Baby Lion Project Co-ordinator (Amman).

Mahmoud Bdour, Director, Oryx Project. Baby Lion Project Co-ordinator (Wadi Rum)

Naser Zawaydeh, Focal Point, Wadi Rum

Abdullah Ali Al Zalabeyh, Bedouin Guide, Wadi Rum