Instead of shutting the door and isolating themselves in a dark room, cutting themselves off from the outside world, they have chosen to live life to the full and let the world hear their voices. They are el-Sameteen troupe. The Egyptian deaf and dumb dancing troupe, el-Sameteen (The Silent), that was founded by Reda Abdel-Aziz, consists of a very determined young men and women, who insist on welcoming the world and changing its negative attitude towards them. When he visited the Deaf and Dumb School in el-Mahalla el-Kobra in the Nile Delta, Reda realised that some of the pupils were unable to communicate with the people around them and were even very afraid of them. He, therefore, decided to do something to help them express themselves artistically in a way that the outside world would understand. He decided to teach them dance theatre. "I resorted to the way employed by the German composer Beethoven after becoming deaf, in order to hear music; I then adapted it for my troupe," Reda says. "I've transformed musical pieces into tempo and beats that deaf people can feel. I train them one by one, so they can feel the inner tempo. Of course, it takes time as well as effort, but when you see how happy they are, you feel like you're flying." A documentary film entitled Nahno Hona (We are Here) is currently being shot about el-Sameteen troupe. This film will show how difficult it's been for el-Sameteen and how they chose dancing for interacting with society and expressing themselves with this universal language. The film, directed by Sherine Talaat and edited by Azza Sultan, is being shot in el-Mahalla el-Kobra, the hometown of the troupe. "We have asked many times for funding from the Egyptian Cultural Development Fund [CDF], but the difficulties are great. I fund the troupe by myself and of course I need help which is why we always feel that there's no stability," says Reda, a former dancer and musician. Although el-Sameteen troupe have travelled the world via international news agencies and newspapers, they've never actually left Egypt. "People who work in the CDF can't understand that this is a unique troupe, representing a new art. This troupe should be an ambassador for Egypt. The country should do more to get the troupe to represent it in international festivals," he stresses. It's been very hard for Reda to convince the families of the members of the troupe, because most of them are poor and don't appreciate the purpose of art. Reda knows that dancing has its own audience and not everyone understands or likes it, but he can handle that. "I've suffered a lot to reach my goal, but it's been worth it," he told the Egyptian Mail in an interview. Reda has written a study entitled ‘Drama and the Deaf Child', which deals with his experiences with deaf and dumb children, but he's yet to find a foundation in Egypt concerned about this issue. "All the Egyptian institutions concerned with disabled children only marginalise them. They don't really care about them. We need to care about them. They too have the right to live a good life," he adds.
