Theatre is a source of joy and inspiration to people of all ages, regardless of other social or economic differences. Need to support theatre for children is felt in our times as the cultural space for children’s activities appears to be shrinking rapidly. Children not only enjoy participating actively in production of dramas but learn a great deal from watching performances also. Sangeet Natak Akademi would be the right agency to intervene, aid engage itself by launching several schemes specially aimed at, supporting, encouraging and promoting activity in the domain of ‘Children’s Theatre’ during the plan.

The areas to be taken up for special schemes would be in both, the conceptual or software and structural or hardware sections. The conceptual/software:

1. A scheme to hold workshops for children, in several parts of India. Participants would be in the age group of 8 years to 15 years. Over a period of five years such participants would number several hundreds over the entire nation and may be seen as active participants in propagation of Children’s Theatre. A space for Children’s cultural activity would have been claimed by children, at the conclusion of such scheme.

1.A. Group dynamics, teamwork, and participation in terms of equal opportunity, gender parity etc. are to be observed in these workshops.

1.B. teaching simple ‘Acting’ techniques would be taken up. Music and Movement would be taught.

1.C. design, speech, voice training would also follow.

1.D. simple crafts will also be taught.

2. Dramatization of material will be taken up by teachers

2.A. Subjects would include issues of scientific temper and non-formal education

2.B. Adult teachers would use the workshops for comprehensive development of participants, encouraging creativity and generation of ideas.

3. Performances: Encourage children to perform, support these performances at regional level.

In the hardware/infrastructural domain:

1.A. Performance spaces need to be identified. Open air spaces, transformation of outdoor spaces into performance areas, will be encouraged grants could be given to imaginative use of non-traditional performance space.

1.B. Make-up and costume kits will have to be provided to the needy.

1.C. Musical instruments such as simple percussion (drums) and flutes or string instruments could have to be provided to the needy.

1.D. Folk elements like use of puppets or local, regional festivals (religions or secular) would be seen as opportunities to support children’s participation.

1.E. Curtains, lights and P.A. systems where needed, will be subsidized by the scheme.

Sangeet Natak Akademi will also invite children’s plays at National Level for performances.

Children’s theatre is an internationally recognized need and several countries are engaged in programmes that not only support their own efforts but also work for exchange programmes. Children’s theatre badly needs support in India. Sangeet Natak Akademi will have opened an important front in creating and implementing these schemes.