The New World
The final provocation called for children to reflect and share a video message about what they'd like the world to be like in the future. Here's what they had to share:
The final provocation called for children to reflect and share a video message about what they'd like the world to be like in the future. Here's what they had to share:
Barking Gecko Theatre, Australia in collaboration with ThinkArts in India came up with a new digital initiative called Isolate > Create > Connect which aimed to showcase how children’s experiences with the COVID-19 phenomenon across the world are similar and different at the same time. It is a recording of life in isolation from the perspective of these young minds.
Isolate > Create > Connect was free to participate in. The programme was launched on April 29, Wednesday, and lasted for 10 weeks, concluding in the last week of June. Children could join in at any point in between and send in their contributions.
Each week, a video by teaching artists from BGT and associate artists from TA was uploaded on the website. Children between the ages of 5 and 17, all across the world were asked to engage in a variety of creative tasks such as video recording, photography and other forms of storytelling, in order to express their points of view.
The responses were added to a gallery of all the creative contributions on BGT’s website. These were shared each week for the 10-week duration. At the end of this period, Isolate > Create > Connect had created a digital scrapbook of children’s creative perspectives on these unprecedented times.
“Deepening our established connection with ThinkArts in Kolkata, India, Isolate > Create > Connect allows BGT to shine a light on the experiences of children from cultures outside of Australia by inviting responses from children not only in WA, but also in India and globally”, said Luke Kerridge, BGT Artistic Director, who was last in Kolkata in Nov 2019 when he led workshops for children and theatre practitioners at the ThinkArts International Festival for Young Audiences.
"Through Isolate > Create > Connect, we will be sharing perspectives of children from across the world and connecting them through this creative platform. While the present situation makes it difficult for us to collaborate in the physical world, we are grateful that the digital space allows us to continue our connection with BGT", said Ruchira Das, Director, ThinkArts.
Isolate > Create > Connect was free to participate in. The programme was launched on April 29, Wednesday, and lasted for 10 weeks, concluding in the last week of June. Children could join in at any point in between and send in their contributions.
Each week, a video by teaching artists from BGT and associate artists from TA was uploaded on the website. Children between the ages of 5 and 17, all across the world were asked to engage in a variety of creative tasks such as video recording, photography and other forms of storytelling, in order to express their points of view.
The responses were added to a gallery of all the creative contributions on BGT’s website. These were shared each week for the 10-week duration. At the end of this period, Isolate > Create > Connect had created a digital scrapbook of children’s creative perspectives on these unprecedented times.
“Deepening our established connection with ThinkArts in Kolkata, India, Isolate > Create > Connect allows BGT to shine a light on the experiences of children from cultures outside of Australia by inviting responses from children not only in WA, but also in India and globally”, said Luke Kerridge, BGT Artistic Director, who was last in Kolkata in Nov 2019 when he led workshops for children and theatre practitioners at the ThinkArts International Festival for Young Audiences.
"Through Isolate > Create > Connect, we will be sharing perspectives of children from across the world and connecting them through this creative platform. While the present situation makes it difficult for us to collaborate in the physical world, we are grateful that the digital space allows us to continue our connection with BGT", said Ruchira Das, Director, ThinkArts.
