Members of little-known Wamda group are on a mission: To revive old forms of Egyptian folkloric dolls and puppets facing extinction against the modern and western alternatives.
Held from Feb. 20-26 at Beit El Seheimy under the slogan “We Have What Can Represent Us, the second Festival for Folkloric Puppetry celebrated the two Egyptian patterns of “aragouz (wooden clown puppet) and shadow puppetry. The festival was organized by Wamda and sponsored by the Cultural Development Fund (CDF), a Culture Ministry affiliate.
“We are the only nation that uses the word arousa (doll or puppet) in different contexts, founder and head of Wamda Group Nabil Bahgat told Daily News Egypt. “For example you find ‘arousat al-moulid’ (a doll sold during Prophet Mohamed’s annual birth anniversary festival) and people call brides ‘arousa’.
During the festival, 10 young artists gave, directed and built the set for four performances, combining elements of acting, shadow puppetry and singing.
Artists presented their performances alongside Amm Saber El-Masry, one of the last living veteran puppeteers in Egypt.
Twenty-year-old Wamda Executive Manager Zainab El-Sharkawy was first introduced to puppetry arts two years ago when she joined a workshop given by her university professor Nabil Bahgat, who eventually chose her to lead the team.
“It can take a person two days to learn about puppetry but the question is in what framework she/he will present it, El-Sharkawy said. “In our case, Dr Nabil gave us the opportunity to be creative and add our own perspectives to the shows we perform.
One performance that was well received by children and adults alike was Ali El-Zeibaq, a Robin Hood-like hero who battles corruption.
Another performance was Aragouz.com based on Hans Christian Anderson’s fable “The Emperor’s New Clothes. The subtext of the performance touches upon the notion of repression and the lies people become closely attached to in order to maintain a false sense of security.
On the sidelines of the festival, Wamda conducted open discussions, workshops and seminars on puppetry as well as an exhibition showcasing more than 120 different forms of folkloric dolls and puppets.
For Bahgat, Wamda is not merely an entertainment group, it’s a school teaching people the dying art of doll making and training art lovers to become puppeteers.
“Producing puppets and dolls can be a good source of income and a means of teaching kids how to be producers and innovators rather than consuming ready-made toys, Bahgat said.
In 2007, Bahgat and his group gave 121 performances in front of more than 40,000 viewers in the US.
“At that time we dealt with American communities knowing nothing about Egypt, Bahgat recalled.
“We have arts and heritage that can represent us, which is older than the US history itself. Kids were so happy chanting ‘I love Egypt’ after watching us, he added.
The Center for Puppetry Arts in Atlanta has allocated a permanent museum for 40 Egyptian puppets.
Meanwhile, Minister of Culture Farouk Hosni has agreed to build a center dedicated to aragouz and shadow puppetry in Egypt.
Wamda will be conducting a free workshop March 6 on the sidelines of the Cairo International Film Festival for Children.
