The Caravan Project

We are very happy and honoured to have been involved in the artistic direction of the Caravan Project - A project putting the Syrian refugee voices at the heart of a street theatre performance, literally, through the use of recorded storytelling audio. The performance has toured Lebanon and Tunisia and is now looking into touring Europe.

To read more about the project please click on this link
THE CARAVAN

To read about the personal experience of our Co-founder and Artistic Director of the Project Sabine Choucair CLICK HERE .

You can also watch this 16min documentary that sums up the experience:

Hurray to more hopeful projects around the world. 

Clown tour supported by the Embassy of Switzerland in Lebanon

With the support of the Embassy of Switzerland in Lebanon, we started our clown tour around Lebanon, where we are offering 20 performances and workshops to Syrian, Palestinian and Lebanese kids throughout the country.

5 clowns are already on the go -The performance is highly physical and visual, it follows the trip of the clowns, the preparations, their games and their little misunderstandings. It is based on clown skits, routines and fun interactive games.

Clowns touring:  

Sabine Choucair, Sara Berjawi, Layal Ghanem, Walid Saliba and Hisham Abou Nasr. 

Tour dates and places: 

April 19th  - Majdel Anjar, Saadnayel - 10.30 am , 12.30pm 

April 20th  - Bar Elias, Nahrieh - 10.30 am, 12.30pm

April 21rst - Malala school - 10.30am, 12.30pm

April 22nd - Sawa camps Bekaa - 10.30am, 12.30pm

May 19th   - Palestinian camps Beirut - 10.30am, 12.30pm

May 20th   - Dar Al Aytam Beirut - 10.30am, 3pm

May 21rst  - La Maison des Jeunes et de la culture Zouk - 11am

May 22nd  - Kefraya, Lela - 10.30am, 12.30pm

May 26th   - Sour - 10.30am, 12.30pm, 3pm

May 27th   - Saida palestinian camps - 10.30am, 12.30pm

Trailer: 

Press:

http://www.alaraby.co.uk/english/blog/2016/2/10/isnt-it-funny-beiruts-clown-activists-tackle-serious-issues

Lesvos- Greece with Clowns Without Borders

I remember before going to Lesvos, a friend who works for Unicef told me that it is going to be an intense trip.
My answer was: " I am used to working with refugees, I think it will be fine".

She was definitely so right about that.  I will share here some observations - statuses I have posted - pictures and videos from the journey-

What was I doing there with Clowns Without Borders? You can watch these two videos

  

and the AJ+ video below

https://www.facebook.com/ajplusenglish/videos/642088932599284/

October 28th
Our first performances in lesvos ...
We've done one camp and a harbor so far.
It is so beautiful to be able to draw smiles on bored, tired, anxious, worried faces.
Thank you @clownswithoutborders Luz Gaxiola Clay Mazing and Molly Rose for being an amazing team. Clowns Without Borders


October 29th
Lesvos is where you can plan nothing ahead of time; even deciding to go to the toilet involved two shows because... why not? And what else we're here for!
At night, it was a different story. we heard of a boat that had capsized with 400 people on it. We ran there not in clown costumes. I was translating, supporting wounded people, people who lost family members, women and kids. Molly and Luz helping with distributing warm clothes to the lucky ones who made it and Clay playing music for a family who couldn't find their father and supported us.
There was this man in his 40s, crying sooooo much. I thought he had lost a family member like many others around. We sat together and he recounted
that the moment they started swimming he saw a baby in a life jacket drowning, he held him tight and swam and swam and swam...
then looked to check on him to realize that he was only holding the life jacket.
The baby slipped away and with him this man's soul got lost in the sea...


Lesvos is a land where everyone you encounter has tears in their eyes.
Tears of joy after finding a sibling, a daughter, a son, a wife, a husband, a mother or a father.
Tears of horror and sadness after the loss of family members.
Tears of tiredness from sleeping on the sides of the roads, from the very cold nights and from hunger.
Tears of compassion specially observed on faces of the Greek people who are trying their best to help. The journalists who are covering the heartbreaking news, the volunteers coming from all over the world who (most of them) have never encountered that much misery in one place...
Tears of us clowns after every interaction with the crowds.

Lesvos is tired. Very very tired.

31 October  ·

Thank you Clowns Without Borders today we performed 4 shows and done different "Clown Pit Stops" in different camps and ports.
Seeing people smiling (kids and adults) melts my heart...

1 November at 00:24 ·

I danced with this little kid on the right side of the picture wearing the light brown jacket and clapping. He was soaking wet but very happy to play and laugh with the clowns after enduring a rough time in the sea. He is a marvelous dancer by the way.
It wasn't until today that I understood why he was so wet.
This kid survived the sinking boat and now off to a hopefully better life.

http://www.pri.org/…/tragedy-continues-another-boat-sinks-l…

1 November at 21:42 · Edited ·

We were on a "Clown Pit Stop" on the side walk of the harbor - there was this guy wearing a pink google shirt - he made a joke in Arabic that I didn't really get but everybody in the crowd roared laughing; I thought this guy must be even funnier than us clowns so I invited him to take my part 
his first comment was: " Well, my dad is dead, he was burnt from head to toe and I almost died last night in the sea, so I might as well have some fun now"
Clay Mazing lasso'ed him and hugged him tight
Luz Gaxiola played amazing music while some bubbles were flying in the air.

it was a beautiful moment for him and us.
I feel so humbled to have taken part in this magical, hopeful, clown moment.
thank you Clowns Without Borders

3 November 

Today while performing in the UNHCR waiting area of one of the camps, a 10 year old kid was enjoying the show until he heard the sound of a helicopter. pure coincidence; I was looking at him at that specific moment.
His world collapsed, his smile turned into extreme fear, he looked at the sky then in no time put his and the two other kids' heads on the floor and shouted : " an airplane an airplane - hide hide". But the other kids didn't understand why he was acting this way and they did not obey...
That terrified him even more. He was shivering so much.
Not sure if he knew the other kids or just felt responsible for the ones next to him at that specific moment. But what I'm sure of is that this kid saw all the airplanes that once flew over his house in Syria in one fraction of a second.
At that specific moment I couldn't help myself from crying. I went and hugged him, the helicopter left. We continued the show and he smiled again...
I hope it will be long before he hears such sounds again.

4 November 

A happy day in Lesvos.
So far everyone arrived safely. We helped some people getting to the first registration camp and performed there.
One girl loved the small origami tree she got during one clown skit and after the show came to me and asked if we will go to Sweden because she's going there.
I said she will definitely meet some other clowns there. Then she replied with a very sad and concerned face : " but we will be staying in a house there and not in a camp - clowns don't come to houses."
Hurray clowns for making the refugee camps a desired place 

 · 

4 November 

an illustrator followed us to one of our shows in Moria camp in Lesvos
the outcome is worth sharing.
Thank you Hannah Kirmes-daly

5 November 

From today's show
Well one of the shows

 

 6 November 

A ‪#‎rubber_boat‬ can mean putting people's lives in danger, sinking and loosing loved ones but can also mean a new life worth being celebrated with the clowns;
Lesvos is where contradictory feelings travel with you all day long and mess with your mind!

7 November 

kids in Lesvos taught me that the simplest acts are the most meaningful ones
Clowns Without Borders, Molly Rose Luz Gaxiola Clay Mazing Clown Me In ClownMe In

Sabine Choucair 

Global Handwshing day - with UN Habitat

 
UN Habitat Lebanon has commissioned us ( the Clown Me In group) to perform in different public schools in Lebanon (supported by the ministry of Culture) - throughout the month of October and November 2015.
 





The touring performance is specifically tailored to tackle the hand-washing and hygiene theme. 



Sadly, this year, hygiene is one of the most important themes in Lebanon and specially among kids who are ( like everyone else) being exposed to all sorts of bacteria and skin diseases because of the excess of garbage on our streets and under our bridges. 


We are very humbled and thrilled to have been given this task. The clowns are having a lot of fun with the kids, laughing, playing, creating, dreaming and sharing precious moments. 
 
Clown Me In performances aim to make audiences laugh, they're simple and soulful but also shed a light on social and cultural issues. 
 

For more pictures please visit this link 

CLOWN SHOW PICTURES

Trash Lebanese Politicians

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Here we are, two and half months post garbage crisis and nothing has changed. Except of course the piles of garbage that are at least 2m long now, the smell of sewage and garbage that is duplicating with every breeze and the new kinds of respiratory and skin diseases that are doing the tour of the country, visiting every house and every school. 

With my group Clown Me In, we decided to shift our clown attacks to a more specified ones about this garbage situation. We've joined the street movement and we posted some clown video actions on Facebook. 

We filmed them in half a day and edited them really quickly. They're less than 1min long each and carry all the anger and absurdity of the situation - 

They are a clown reaction to an absurd situation!!!!!!

To our surprise the videos went viral and got more than 90K views. Probably because their timing and cause were both very relevant to Lebanon. 

I just uploaded them on You Tube so one can watch them in higher res than on FB

Lebanon as not seen on TV 

 كنوز لبنان - Treasures of Lebanon

بموت بلبنان - I'd die for Lebanon 

Clown Attack - Trash problem in Lebanon

With the horrific trash problem happening now in Lebanon and the government that is not coming up with sustainable solutions - 

Clown Me In decided to join the #Tol3et_Rihetkom movement to call for sustainable, long-term solutions to this problem in its own fun way.  

We definitely added some humour to the tensed situation and  enjoyed playing, chanting and singing our 2 specially prepared clown songs. 

And we even made the above the fold photo on the Daily Star front page right under a title describing the challenges of the Lebanese Cabinet! :) 
Now this is fun!!!!  

Clown Attack - May 31rst - Lebanon - Hamra street

Our latest clown attack was definitely not the easiest one we've done so far  

So many people were on the streets, and we were playing with the "littering" idea for the first time. 

WE HAD A BLAST meeting people

finding the game

acting as a group and meeting our clowns in a different context we are used to

Clown Me In Attack - Litter

On the 31st of May, between 4 and 5.30pm the clowns will descend…attacking the streets of Hamra with jokes, joy, and litter! 

Lebanon is a world leader in the art of littering, but we can do more! 

Join us as we drive our ecoclown car and artfully decorate the city with gorgeous aluminium scraps and angelic pieces of neglected plastic…because there’s no such thing as too many clowns, or too much garbage.

Clown Tours in Lebanon with Syrian Refugees and Lebanese community

 The year 2014 was amazing for our Clowns Without Borders Clown Me IN trips in Lebanon.

December 1rst till 17th we were touring in different Lebanese schools, partnering with MAG and LMAC who's one of their many missions is "mine risk education".
Clowns and mines education? it was definitely a super challenging theme. Samantha Holdsworth, Jan Damm, Clay Letson and myself accepted this fun challenge and came up with a super fun 30min performance. It was fun for us and I guess also fun for the kids.
Jim Muir from BBC followed us in one of our tours on the borders.




In June, CWB partened with Layan organisation- 4 clowns - Luz Gaxiola, Dave Clay, Claudio Martinez and myself - performed and gave workshops for Syrian refugees in the Bekaa and in the North of Lebanon.

photo by - Farah Kassem

We spent 15 days, performed 19 times for over 3800 kids.


It was an amazing amazing experience. I remember many sweet moments but one of the best was when we were performing in the back room of a mosque in the Bekaa and one guy was passing by!!! he loved what we were doing and asked us if we could go perform for the kids at the camp where he lives.

Photo by Farah Kassem

Us clowns, we loved the idea, and without even giving it a second thought we went. We were welcomed by tons and tons of red flowers held by the kids who were jumping around, laughing and hugging us...

Photo by Farah Kassem

Photo by Farah Kassem

Below I am sharing the work of the AP journalist Simone Camilli -
Simone passed away while covering the Gaza war few months after doing this awesome work.

http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/Any/fb6d0305aaadc225b3ef67a1c118aece#

Social Clowning

 

oh Yes
Clown Me In Lebanon claims responsibility for Beirut clown attack!













 
People not stopping on traffic lights is a common huge problem in Lebanon. Needless to tell you how many times I was about to hit a car, a motorcycle or a pedestrian just because I didn't know I had to stop on the GREEN light!!!!











Add to this that I've always wanted to do social clowning! 
And during the last Clown Me In workshop, a marvelous group of clowns was formed and they all had amazing social clowning ideas. 







 



So we thought !!!!! WHY NOT. Let's hit the streets for some Clown Me In attacks. 















 We simply congratulated people who stopped on the red light in our own clown way.
And guess what, the few people we met have had so much fun and pushed us to do more and more! 

The only person who was ticked off was the POLICE man he said: " what if a VIP person - a minister for instance- passes from here and doesn't want to have clowns coming close to him?" 
and he kicked us out of the street!!!!  

Fine, next time we will make sure to have a special clown permit and warning for VIP people to stay away...

Click on the links below to see more pictures of the two events and keep yourself posted of our new Social Clowning in Lebanon every week by liking/clicking on our FB page. 

Event of the 16th of February 2014
Event of the 22nd of February 2014


 ps: if you have any ideas for our social clowning and/or would like to join us, please leave a message here.

Clown Me In workshop / Lebanon

                                            It's this time of the year again :) 

Don’t we find ourselves stressed and anxious all the time?
وقرفنا وزهقنا من الحالة

Here's an opportunity to spend 5 days of laughter and fun. Meet a new group and experience something totally different.

Put on a red nose/ Step on stage/ Dig into yourself

Clown Me In is inviting you to its new workshop between the 10th and 14th of February 2014
between 6.30 and 9.30 pm
fees: USD 175
USD 150 for registration before the 4th of February

PLACES ARE LIMITED -

For more info about the workshop, you can watch the following link
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tlau5LmdTV8


for registration contact sabine@clownmein.com

What’s in the workshop:
We will discover how to unlock our clown, say yes, dig into our most ridiculous fears, most absurd fantasies, most impressive talents and our deepest dislikes... and we will laugh and play with our clowns
The aim is simple, discover and accept the Clown that lies beneath each of us, and let it coexist with oneself in society.

About Clown Me In
Clown Me In is a theatre company founded by Sabine Choucair from Lebanon and Gabriela Munoz from Mexico, two actors trained in physical theater in London.
Clown Me In uses clowning to explore human dynamics and vulnerabilities, giving people a new way to learn about themselves through clowning workshops and performances.

"Sleepless Nights" and the Clown (Me In)

Sleepless Nights ( documentary dir.Eliane Raheb)
Through the stories of Assaad Shaftari, a former high ranking intelligence officer in a Christian right wing militia, responsible for many casualties in the protracted civil war in Lebanon and Maryam Saiidi, the mother of Maher, a missing young communist fighter who disappeared in 1982, the film digs in the war wounds and asks if redemption and forgiveness are possible. 






One of the scenes shows bits of the process from when Assaad Shaftari was taking a Clown Me In workshop. 

Naturally, we (Gabriela Munoz and myself- Sabine Choucair) were so thrilled to have someone like Assaad Shaftari going through the workshop. Moreover, we were very happy to have been involved in such an important movie like "Sleepless Nights".

I have been reading and hearing lots of controversial reactions toward this scene. ( mostly extreme ones)

Below some bits and pieces from different articles. Would love to hear your thoughts in case you've watched the movie. 

And if you haven't yet, it is still showing in Lebanon @Metropolis Empire Sofil, Achrafieh, at 4:30 pm, 7:15pm and 10:00pm ( until the 30th of October)  

Shattuck Cinemas (Berkeley)
Oct. 26, 2013 2:30 pm 

bits and pieces: 

"في الفيلم مشهد يلعب فيه أسعد الشفتري دور المهرج، كل من يشاهد الفيلم سيصاب بنوبة محددة أثناء مشاهدته ربما ضحك وربما بكاء، وربما سترتسم على وجهه ضحكة والدموع تنهمر. مشهد المهرج يحملنا الى العلاقة الجدلية بين الأمل والمسامحة الذاتية وعلاقة الآخرين وموقفهم من الجريمة. ظهر في عيون أسعد أنه لم يسامح نفسه، يقول ابنه في أحد المشاهد ” لازم يخفف اعتذارات “. ربما هو لن يتوقف عن الاعتذار لأنه لم يعترف بكل الأخطاء بعد. " 

http://chafak.wordpress.com

"In the film, Assaad Chaftari plays the role of a clown. While watching this scene you will surely feel something extreme, you might laugh or cry, and maybe smile and cry at the same time.  This clown scene leads us to the dialectical relationship between hope and self-forgiveness and the relationship with others. we could see in the eyes of Chaftari that he did not forgive himself. His son says in one of the scenes: " he should apologize less". Maybe Chaftari won't stop apologizing because he did not confess all his sins yet". 

"قالت لي سيدة صديقة بعد العرض أنها لم تجد مبرّرا لمشهد تمثيل أسعد الشفتري دورَ "المهرّج" كما لو أنه خرج عن موقعه في فيلم وثائقي. أنا كان رأيي العكس تماما. لقد بدا المشهد أحد أقوى عناصر الفيلم وأكثرِها إبداعاً. إنْ لم يكن أقواها. كان هذا المشهد، الذي أدّاه الشفتري بنجاح، التعبيرَ - الذروةَ عن المسافة الشاسعة عن نفسه التي استطاع تحقيقها. كانت قدرة مفاجئة على التهكّم على نفسه. التهريج بمعنى المعاقبة الشديدة للنفس. وبهذا كانت لحظةَ قوّةٍ للفيلم ولأسعد الشفتري لا لحظة خِفّة... غيرُ التوثيقيِّ أي المتخيَّلُ يؤكّد قوّةَ التوثيقي أي الواقعي. أكاد أجزم: يؤكّد صحة التوثيقي." جهاد الزين- جريدة النهار

"A lady friend told me that she did not find any justification for the scene where Assaad plays the role of a clown, as if he came out of his position in a documentary film . I had the exact opposite opinion. The scene was one of the strongest and most creative parts of the film. This was the scene where Chaftari alienated from himself.  He had this great capacity of ridiculing himself. Clowning in the sense of self punishment and for that this was a moment of strength etc..." Jihad El Zein, Annahar newspaper

"In other places, the film appears to fragment its images for the sake of style. It veers into outright surrealism late, when Abbas is shown acting as a clown during a therapy session. The filmmakers think this is important enough to title this section of the film, "The Clown," but I found it digressive and mannered, a quality that it transfers to the overall film itself. It tends to recast Abass's participation in the reconciliation process as a farce, though that's admittedly the point. These kinds of arty excrescences are an encumbrance on a film that is probably too long." krelllabs.blogspot.com

"In one morbidly hilarious and satisfying scene Saiidi bitingly dismiss the psychobabble of a therapist blithely sweeping matters under the rug; in another, Shaftari performs as a clown in a theater exercise. These are “scenes” in the sense that Raheb is constantly searching for new twists and turns on engaging with and reconsidering the past. " Nicolas Rapold, filmcomment.com

 "Sleepless Nights spins to an almost surreal final act, as the performative aspects of cultural “remembrance” are shown in clown shows and cheesy songs." Robert Greene, Hammer To Nail.com

"Raheb supplements the film’s emotional palette with sparks of humor – often in the wry observations of Shaftari’s wife and son – and a peculiar moment near the end of the film when the retired assassin is shown performing during a clowning workshop, red nose and all." Jim Quilty, The Daily Star

 

في أحد المشاهد الختامية، تتبع المخرجة الشفتري في جلسة علاجية يتحوّل فيها الى مهرّج، ونراه للمرة الاولى في وجه مختلف. ساندرا الخوري Albaladonline

In one of the final scenes, the director follows Chaftari to a therapy session where he becomes a clown, and for once, we see a different face of him. Sandra El Khoury, Al Balad Online newspaper

 

Are the slums of Egypt any better than other slums in the world?

I spent 15 days in Egypt during the month of June. 

I initially went to volunteer with Al Mawred in the slums of Cairo and more precisely in Istabl Antar and Ezbet khayrallah area! 

The kids! and the slums ! 

when i first got there i couldn't help but wonder if they were any worse than the Indian slums! or the Brazilian ones! 

well.. at least people in Istabl Antar are productive (something that is rare to find in other slums i visited)

On the way, from the mini bus window

First picture i took upon my arrival

They are all looking for a 2nd 3rd or 4th wife! anyone interested? they asked me to post their picture!!!!

Then i started working with kids on different themes. mainly we focused a lot on animals! bodies, voices, attitudes etc...

when we all met in the big theatre space, the only way to get their attention was to mime and clown around!

and to tell them stories from the "flower's garden" repertoire which they enjoyed very much!  pic by: Halim Al Chaarani

these are candles that he would like to have so he can get rid of darkness at night when there's no electricity and when his father is away!

 

our goodbyes

 

Janana mobile festival - 29 March till 2 April 2013

Like every year Clown Me In performs and gives workshops for Palestinian refugees (and this year for Syrian refugees as well) by touring with Al Jana during Janana Mobile festival.

Mask making workshop this year was a great success. The best so far I guess

Social Therapy with Syrian Refugees in the Bekaa – (Mercy Corps org) February 2013

6 days of social therapy sessions and 6 other days of follow up with 14 Syrian Refugees ( age: 17 to 35) living in Baalbeck. Most of them had just moved to Lebanon in the past 3 to 4 months after facing harsh conditions in Syria.

The group was amazing and they were so good in creating the conditions of their own therapy.

The activities were divided into different parts, among which: collaboration and improvisation using means including music, theatre, poetry, community projects, sports, and storytelling.
Social therapy enables people to experience life in new ways. It does not seek to solve problems, but to help participants accept life's difficulties and create practical, positive ways to deal with them which they surely did!