CAIRO - The World of Dwarves, a play written by Hassan Saad and directed by Egyptian actress Azza Labib, is being performed in the Children's Theatre in Cairo. The play, which marks Azza's directing debut, deals with conflict in the Arab region and the world in the light of globalisation. “The theme is controversial. A child's mind must be respected and he must given what he needs. But what is it exactly he needs? More importantly, who is supposed to write for children? And what should they write about?” asked Girgis Shoukri in the local weekly magazine Radio and Television. What is good about the show is the way that it delivers a message to children of every age, without coating it in legends and superstitions. The World of Dwarves is about defending our nation, looking for peace, not war, telling the story of peace through two groups of people. The first is the Kingdom of the Dwarves, who live in mountains and forests. They are mean and evil, an idea that deepens the racism in the minds of children. Then there is the Kingdom of the Happy People, who are good and live in peace. In-between, the two kingdoms lies the magical White City, which stands for power and sovereignty and which rules these kingdoms. “We all know that good always wins in the end, despite a representative from the White City enticing the dwarves to steal documents that proves that the Kingdom of the Happy People belongs to them [the dwarves]. “The prince, the son of the king of the happy people, steals back the documents from the dwarves, so that the happy people can regain their land. As well as the idea of racism, there is another issue: stealing to gain one's rights. Of course, no comment," writes Shoukri. The three-act play starts with an operetta entitled, ‘Our Land, Our Honour'. The lyrics and choice of words are another problem, in addition to the dramatic treatment. Shoukri, the entertainment critic, said that the play confused children, for example the first act, which begins with the entrance of the dwarves, because children are bound to laugh at these little people. “We are introduced to the King of the Dwarves, who loves grapes and imports them from the Kingdom of the Happy People; but he can't find any, so he gets angry and holds an emergency meeting with his helpers to figure out a solution for this problem. He uses low language to express his anger,” Shoukri continued. A representative from the White City then suggests stealing the documents that prove that the Kingdom of the Happy People actually belongs to the Kingdom of the Dwarves. The play further stresses the evils of monopolising resources and wealth, and Shoukri thinks that children will understand this message. The act ends with an operetta ��" ‘I am above All' ��" performed by the representative. "The play has artistic value, but it would be more suitable for adults, not children," he added, as it's too complicated for the latter. “The conflict between bad and good is not balanced and thus it isn't easy for actors to convince children which kingdom is the Kingdom of the Happy People, which doesn't differ at all from the Kingdom of the Dwarves. “The idea of the documents, the grapes and the White City, which supports the dwarves, is fake. Of course, the writer of the play is meant to be referring to the Palestinian issue, but she fails to do so. "The Kingdom of the Happy People is exposed to occupation and its citizens get displaced, but in the end they get their land back. However, it's unconvincing," Shoukri commented. "Good intentions don't make theatre," he stressed, adding that slogans ill behove theatrical works, whether for children or not. However, despite differing with Azza, he believes that she is a good director. He was also impressed by the actors, rather than their roles. “Every writer has the right to propose any idea in the Children's Theatre, but he has to bear in mind the language he uses to address them, whether in dialogue, poetry or even song. “Peace is a good theme, but it has to be presented in a way that doesn't have a bad impact on a child's mind.”
