Workshop on shadow play to revive the intangible heritage in Aleppo

With the participation of 14 trainees of different age groups, the activities of an advanced training workshop on shadow play, organized by the Directorate of Intangible Heritage in the Ministry of Culture, in cooperation with the Directorate of Culture in Aleppo, have been launched today, with the aim of reviving the intangible heritage and teaching young people the heritage, customs and traditions of society.

The director of culture in Aleppo, Jaber al-Sajour, explained in a statement that the goal of the workshop is to achieve sustainable human development for workers in the field of intangible heritage and preserve it.

At the end of the workshop a theatrical performance entitled “Masoud’s Concert” is scheduled to be displayed during Eid Al-Adha holidays for the children and their families.

Director Jamal Khalo stated that through the workshop, trainees learn how to make puppets. Trainees also learn the sound techniques and the performance of the actor in a new way of thinking while preserving the intangible heritage. The heroes in the shadow play are puppets which reflect to the audience the symbolic image of the character.

Writer Fayez Dayeh said: “The workshop aims to prepare young men and women to revive this art and profession as the new dramatic shadow play has an aesthetic through which the screen and its size have evolved.

Through the workshop trainees learn how to design and implement puppets, the mechanism of moving them, creating the character through reading and implementing the text. Trainees further learn how to deal with puppets and link the sound with the image, through the development of acting abilities in performance and movement of characters, as well as vocal diction and intonation exercises.