Below, a Yated reader describes to a friend just how
special those "special" children really are.
Dear Miriam,
I must tell you about an amazing event I experienced in
Haifa.
At the Haifa Theater, a cast of youngsters from the Tzohar
School performed a play about what it means to be different.
They certainly know. The Tzohar School in Rechasim caters to
youngsters with mental and physical challenges, disabilities
or whatever other word is socially correct these days.
(Tzohar is the only day school in the north of the country
that specifically serves charedi children and youth with
special needs.)
The Keren Shalem Foundation funded this rather daring
venture. Believe me, the results were worth it. The kids
have already put on a second performance because so many
people wanted to see it!
Tzohar's drama therapist, Vered Chaya Schweizer, wrote the
script, "Rak Perach Ehad" (Just One Flower) after
researching performances by Canada's Famous People Players,
a successful theater troupe staffed by mentally challenged
adults.
Her next task was to convince Tzohar administrator, Rabbi
Israel Kurnick, that her special education students could
learn parts in a play and would be able to perform in front
of an audience.
The administrator, at first, agreed only to a twenty-minute
play.
Now, 16 girls and young ladies from Tzohar accomplish
amazing feats in a show that runs an hour and twenty minutes.
Performing their roles with discipline and grace, the
actresses deliver the message: mentally challenged people
are PEOPLE WITH FEELINGS just the same as anyone else.
Got that?
I certainly got it, especially when the star of the show, 11-
year-old Sterny Goldberg, sang the theme song, "Just One
Flower." Sterny plays a flower that blooms in a lovely
garden. Sterny's flower, however, has pink leaves and very
peculiar petals. The other flowers, the "normal" ones, with
green leaves and regularly-shaped petals, try to get rid of
her by using their thorns. Sterny's flower has no thorns, so
she can't fight back.
Sterny's flower, however, has an advantage the other flowers
lack: therapeutic properties. When the other flowers begin
to wilt, it's Sterny's flower that is plucked to cheer a
hospitalized child. Then, the restorative powers inherent in
Sterny's "different" flower are used to revitalize the
wilting "normal" flowers.
That's exactly how events play themselves out in real
life. Remember our former neighbor, Meiri, the Downs'
Syndrome baby? When I used to baby-sit for him, my kids
would vie to play with him because he was so delicious, so
to speak.
(At Tzohar, they call it Ups' Syndrome.)
*
In order to present an appealing effect, Mrs. Schweizer used
ultra-violet lighting for much of the action. Black-light
theater, as the technique is known, focuses audience
attention on specific costume elements (in this case,
different types of flower petals). This is a traditional art
form that originated in Asia centuries ago. In the 1980s,
artists in Prague decided to apply modern technology to this
ancient idea, obtaining special effects with the use of
ultra-violet light on stage.
The black-light technique emphasizes the contrast between
Sterny's flower and the other flowers. The stark contrast
lets the audience concentrate on the obvious physical
differences, while listening to the evocative story-line
that emphasizes that "special" people have the same
emotional and spiritual needs as everyone else.
Mrs. Schweizer, who studied puppet-theater and art therapy,
used many of the principles of puppet theater in designing
the set. She also sewed the costumes.
"I made the colored parts of the costumes from foam rubber
and phosphorescent paint. Foam rubber is easy to work with
and comfortable to wear," she said.
The performers wore black clothes under their costumes to
emphasize the colorful design elements under ultra-violet
light.
"I chose to work with black-light theater for another
reason," Mrs. Schweizer told me. "I wanted to work around
the audience's initial adverse reaction to the appearance of
the physically challenged people on stage."
By the end of the show, when each performer was introduced
personally, there was no chance of an adverse audience
reaction. On the contrary, feelings of respect, appreciation
and admiration were expressed, for the performers, their
parents and their teachers.
"The girls matured a lot while preparing for this show,"
Mrs. Schweizer said. "For instance, one of the girls is more
capable of executing tasks than another girl in her class. I
teach these kids, so I know how they behave in class. Sarah
used to bother Rivka often. She picked on her, because Rivka
couldn't really fight back. They've been working together
for three months to get ready to perform, and their
relationship has changed completely. Sarah doesn't tease
Rivka anymore, and they are always happy to see each other.
"For our first performance (at the Haifa Theater), we had
wonderful teamwork. There was no competition among the cast
members. Only in an atmosphere of yiras Shomayim could
we have had such wonderful teamwork. There was a real
emphasis on the interpersonal mitzvos bein adom
l'chavero."
This show required not only the considerable talents of
professional theater people and dedicated teachers. It
demanded that each person involved work "with the heart."
And that, especially the Tzohar students, certainly did.
I'll let you know if another performance is scheduled. You
won't want to miss it, I am sure.
All the best,
Devorah
