Clowns Without Borders (CWB) harnesses the power of humor to bring people together, especially in challenging environments. 

Our recent tour in Egypt exemplifies this mission perfectly and demonstrates how laughter can be a catalyst for both social cohesion and environmental awareness.

The journey began with a collaboration between CWB Artist in Residence Hannah Gaff and a talented Egyptian team, including Nelly Abd-El Maksoud, Saly Ahmed, Sami Gomaa, Tarek Ahmed, and Diaa Eldin Rayad, under the guidance of Project Manager Ahmed Moussa.

Then the Garbage Monster showed up…

Project Summary: A Creative Collaboration

CWB-USA partnered with Vassar College and Dawar Arts Egypt for the groundbreaking Theatre for Climate Justice Project to address the intersecting crises of climate change and forced displacement in Egypt.

By leveraging the power of theatre and puppetry, the team aimed to support the work of vulnerable communities, particularly refugees and asylum seekers, while addressing environmental concerns.

Through interactive workshops and captivating performances, the team explored the challenges posed by climate change, including sea-level rise, pollution, and resource scarcity. These issues disproportionately affect forcibly displaced populations who often live in overcrowded and precarious conditions. 

The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation generously supported the project through the Consortium on Forced Migration, Displacement, and Education (CFMDE).

Now let’s explore how play and laughter are potent tools for building community, fostering creativity, and addressing pressing global challenges.

Defeating the Garbage Monster

The team developed a captivating one-hour play centered on the pressing issue of pollution in the Nile River.

A central character in the play was the formidable “Garbage Monster,” a symbol of the environmental challenges facing Cairo. 

Kids with refugee or asylum seeker status from Sudan, South Sudan, Syria, Somalia, Ethiopia, Eritrea, and Yemen helped defeat the play’s Garbage Monster that was destroying their villages.

Artist Diaa Eldin Rayad shared that, “Interacting with children is one of the most enjoyable moments for me. One child told me, 

When we came to the end of the show, he collected the plastic bottles by himself without being asked to do so.

By engaging children, particularly those with refugee or asylum-seeker backgrounds, in confronting this monstrous foe, the team encouraged a sense of agency and empowerment.

And when you defeat the Garbage Monster, you, of course, need a dance party to celebrate your victory…

He Found His Voice Through Play

Workshops hosted by the team lead children to transform everyday trash into vibrant puppets of fish, crocodiles, and cobras.

The act of upcycling empowered children to become active participants in environmental conservation. This creative approach sparked imagination and ignited a sense of responsibility for action.

One particularly heartwarming story emerged from the workshops. 

Children’s voices, too frequently silenced by adversity, found expression through play and creativity through the Theatre for Climate Justice Project.

Tarek Ahmed recalls another moment when a child practiced agency and self-expression: 

“A girl decided to make the tail in her own way. After suggestions from me about how to make the tail, she told me, ‘Hmmmm…, I will draw it.’” 

Nelly Abd-El Maksoud shared how a child’s passionate creativity inspired her own creativity:

“Today there was a little girl who made the crocodile puppet. And for the first time, I experienced the feeling that someone was fully aware that she was doing something beautiful. This is a new feeling for me. She kept putting in a lot of details of her own, and I kept cutting her pieces and doing anything she wanted. She was very passionate about the puppet and had a great interest in it. She made me feel it was possible to turn the simplest things into beautiful things.”

These events highlight the transformative power of play in unlocking children’s potential and fostering self-expression.

Laughter Unleashed in Egypt

Hannah Gaff, our artist-in-residence, observed firsthand the transformative power of play. She recalls, 

“In the beginning of the workshop, two kids said they didn’t think they could make the puppets (made of plastic and garbage found on the street) and by the end they were so proud of the puppets they made, showing them off to everyone.”

And,

A newfound confidence was palpable as they brought their puppets to life, imaginations soaring.

Diaa Eldin Rayad, a member of the Egyptian team, also witnessed the magic of play unfold. He shared, “The children played with us while laughing. A 6-year-old-boy of Sudanese nationality told me, 

‘We will make a snake from a bag of chips. This is difficult!’”

Beyond the technical skill of puppet making, the children demonstrated a remarkable capacity for problem-solving and adaptation.

The workshop became a safe space where they could express themselves freely, build friendships, and develop a deeper understanding of one another.

By providing opportunities for imaginative play and collaborative creation, the team empowered children to overcome challenges, build resilience, and envision a brighter future.

Conclusion

The project brought together children from diverse backgrounds, such as Sudan and Eritrea, fostering a sense of belonging and understanding. 

The shared experience of creating, performing, and laughing helped bridge cultural divides and build a stronger community.

This tour, more than any other this year, challenged our concept of displacement.

Unlike other locations where refugees and migrants live in formal camps (such as Zimbabwe), Cairo’s displaced are integrated into the city. Integrated groups of refugees and migrants face barriers to engagement, including well-founded fears of discrimination.

In this post, we’ll introduce you to five groups of children who live in Cairo and are displaced. We think you’ll fall in love with them just as we have.

But first, let’s talk about how we connected with displaced kids in Cairo.

GPS Can’t Help You Here: Connecting with Displaced Kids in Cairo

Connecting with displaced children diffused throughout a city of 22 million? We couldn’t have done it without these two entities.

First, our funding partners and individual supporters understand that displacement and discrimination overlap. This gave us the flexibility to connect with people with diverse experiences.

On the ground, our partner Nahda Arts School for Social Theatre (NAS) did an incredible job making necessary arrangements, including coordination with local community organizers.

NAS and CWB artists from the US co-created an original performance, which was performed 16 times for 1,990 people in locations throughout the Egyptian capital.

Here are five groups the team performed for:

1. From Garbage to Giggles: The Zabbaleen Kids

We performed a show in the settlement of the Zabbaleen, an Egyptian Arabic word that means “garbage collectors.”

The Zabbaleen, which includes generations of migrants, have long faced stigma and discrimination for their traditional role as garbage collectors and recyclers.

Despite their valuable contribution to managing the city’s waste, they continue to be marginalized and excluded from mainstream society.

Zabbaleen moms wanted to go to the show but couldn’t get it approved by their supervisor, so only the kids came.

We made videos and sent them to the moms. They loved it!

The moms said they wished they could have gone, but it was worth it to see their children so happy.

2. What’s “Better than School” at this Leper Colony?

The enduring stigma of leprosy has been hard for some cultures to shake, and that includes Egypt.

Even though modern medicine has made it possible to cure leprosy with antibiotics and it’s not contagious via casual contact, leper colonies still exist in Egypt.

Because children and adults are forcibly separated from their families and isolated from their community, CWB considers this displacement.

The best thing we heard from a child at a Cairo leprosy colony?

“This is so much fun and better than school!”

3. Street Children (Girls) Begin to Dream of the Stage

In Cairo, many children live on the streets, either alone or with their families.

These children face a lot of challenges, such as violence, exploitation, and abuse. They also lack access to necessities like food, shelter, and healthcare.

It’s hard for these children to break out of poverty because they miss out on education and other opportunities.

Our team performed for street girls connected with the organization Samusocial International Egypt, whose organizational values are dignity, solidarity, and citizenship.

Girls told us, “I want to be like you!” and asked, “How can we be in a theater troupe like you?”

They showed us all of their tricks, flipping who was the audience and who was the performer.

4. “I Am Very Happy!” The Hope and Resilience of Displaced Sudanese

Sudanese migrants in Egypt face many challenges, including:

• Difficulty getting work permits
• Living in overcrowded and unsafe settlements that lack clean water and healthcare
• Discrimination based on race and nationality

Despite experiencing violence and police brutality, families of Sudanese migrants are surviving and are determined to persevere.

One young boy at the Center for Sudanese Migrants said, “I’ve never had this joy before. I am very happy!”

5. Bringing Laughter to Cairo’s Streets: Inclusive Performances for All

Given the melange of displacement and poverty in Cairo, we also performed several street shows, with the goal of reaching anyone who wanted to enjoy some levity.

We included host communities (as we did in Ecuador) to prove a safe place for immigrants and non-immigrants to come together.

“My baby didn’t sleep or run away. She watched the whole time because the show was so engaging.”

– Mother of a toddler at a street show.

Conclusion

The CWB tour in Cairo expanded our definition of displaced and we’re feeling good about it.

The May 2022 tour featured 16 shows and 2 workshops. CWB’s amazing artists were: Robin Lara (USA), David Lichtenstein (USA), Hannah Gaff (USA), Reham Ramzy (Egypt), Michael Hanna (Egypt), Jaklin Shwaky (Egypt), and Mohamed Tarek Abou Heneidy (Egypt).

A big shout out and thank you to our non-performing team members Zach Doleac (Photography) and Mostafa Wafi (Logistics).

Want to see more images from the tour? Check out the video below!