KHUJAND, July 27, 2011, Asia-Pus  -- Youth theaters are being established in the northern Sughd province to promote prevention of conflicts at the community level.

Competitively selected youth have been brought together to receive interactive training in developing plays about actual conflict issues they face and preparing them to perform and engage audiences in diverse communities, Ms. Nargis Nabiyeva, coordinator of the Youth Theater fro Peace program, said.

Training is conducted for them by experts from the “Ehyo – Farhang va Taraqqiyot” public associations on the basis of the Youth Theater for Peace program under financial support of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and in partnership wit IREX (Dushanbe).   

Launched in March 2010, the program is designed for two years and the second phase of implementation of this program has started, Nabiyeva said.  In all, six youth theater groups will be established in two cities and one district (the cities of Konibodom and Isfara and the Jabborrasoulov district) of Sughd bordering Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan, she noted.

The USAID Youth Theater for Peace project uses an arts-based approach, which aims to advance sustainable peace promotion at the community level by encouraging changes in attitudes and behaviors among young people.

The Youth Theater for Peace Program is one of many assistance projects supported by the American people through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

Tajikistan has large youth population that is increasingly removed from economic and educational opportunities, has few positive extracurricular outlets, and is at risk of becoming involved in violence.  Through the Youth Theater for Peace program, rural youth utilize participatory theater as a tool for empowerment and peacemaking in their communities.

The Youth Theater for Peace program promotes sustainable conflict prevention at the community level through a participatory theater methodology called Drama for Conflict Transformation (DCT).

The program is aimed to promote sustainable conflict prevention at the community level by achieving the following objectives: youth-serving professionals develop skills and attitudes to engage youth in Drama for Conflict Transformation; a cadre of youth from adversarial groups is mobilized and empowered to share DCT with the larger community; and trained program participants institutionalize DCT methodologies in their schools, NGOs, workplaces, and other institutions.

DCT incorporates local cultural traditions and starts with simple theater games that break the ice and encourage imagination and play.  Once trust is established within the group, the methodology is used to share personal stories about conflict.  Participants then develop short plays about real-life conflict issues and perform them in their communities, engaging the audience to be part of the performance and contribute to the resolution.  A discussion follows the performance, encouraging dialogue on conflict issues and bringing divided groups into contact.

Troupes of youth from neighboring communities take their performances on the road, sparking dialogue about conflict issues and allowing audience members to suggest and test solutions to real problems.