:: Monday, August 18– Workshop 11 + 12::

Well, what can I say…. I’m just plain stupid aren’t I? As you all know I left to go overseas the week after our last workshop and in my haste and last minute madness, I forgot to email Melissa the last installment for our diary on the website…. My apologies crew but have no fear… I’m never without words of course!

I just read over the last entry I wrote and it feels like it’s just so old because so much has happened since then so I thought I’d scrap that and just write a new one…

Wow – Tuesday May 27 and Saturday May 3, feels like a lifetime ago, especially when I’ve spent the last two months cruising around in a campervan across Europe and inhaling the magic of our beautiful Lebanon. Nonetheless your inspiring minds left such an imprint in my head and my heart that it’s all still as fresh as ever.

The themes of love, relationships, religion and the big one - expectations from our parents, continued to fuel the five star performances we witnessed in the last two workshops. When TJ asked, "What is one piece of advice you are/ were or constantly given by older members of your family/ community", there was a wickedly mixed feeling of laughter, anger, frustration and stillness in the room…. Why? Because it’s not that simple really…. For some it was clear there is no such thing as ‘advice’, it’s more like rules, traditions or just the ‘stuff’ a good little Arab son or daughter has to do to prove they are the good little Arab son or daughter…

For Ahmad, his parents say, "leave school, forget about study and get a trade….make money". For him that translates to… "I make money…my parents respect me….it’s all mad". But what about what Ahmad really wants? That’s the question we were all asking one another and it seems as though what was once a struggle or constant battle of living between the hybrid of our parents upbringing and the western values, that we learn at school and through everyday popular culture here in ‘the lucky country’ is not really a struggle anymore because we don’t want it to be…. not for this crew anyway! Of course that doesn’t mean we don’t have to fight for what we want – that goes without saying – we have to fight to claim a space between the enriching and emotionally charged values and morals our parents instill within us from our culture and the exclusion from the ‘mainstream’ that we face on a daily basis.

Each and every person who came to the workshop has risen above that ‘struggle’ factor though and it’s just about having dreams and how we’re going to get to those dreams, so I’ve learnt from you - the crew. From the stories we heard throughout the entire workshop period, especially in the last two weeks, it’s seems it’s just a little more complicated for us than others because we have that cultural ‘expectation’ factor looming above us constantly…. But it doesn’t mean it’s a bad thing…it’s just the way it is and when you accept it and just make the choice to live your life, you learn how to negotiate between your parents aspirations for you and your own… of course "it’s not as easy when you’re a leb", and that comes straight from the witty mouth of Youseff. Ahmad reckons nothings going to stop him and he’s worked out a way… "I’ve got my security license so I can make a bit of money, and then I can work on my music and being creative during the day".

Anyway enough about that…you get the gist…we are proud of who we are and where we come from and we’re not schizo kids that don’t know where we fit in…we just got some traditions and ‘ways’ of our parents that we need to consider when we make decisions about how we want to live our lives here… a place that is so far removed (not necessarily a better place – just a different place) from where our parents come from.

So this being the last installment, I guess I have to wrap it up, but you know what I can’t because it’s just too hard to let this one go…. I think the whole group will maintain a long and enriching relationship both personally and professionally. Creative collaborations have already formed with Nomise and Ahmad, devising a performance for the short and sharp season of shows in Bankstown. Doha’s designing websites for the crew and Claudia’s working with Aladdin, Wazza ,Nomise, Ahmad and some of the other guys on a theatre production they will perform at a big Premiers Dept gig in November – can’t wait to see it!

So the drama workshops are over and a couple of months have passed where are things at now?
We all know Mojgan had the difficult task of pulling together 6 weeks of ideas, enthusiasm, experiences, hardships, magical moments and stories into a 1 hour script and she delivered that to us on Sunday. At first there was a communal look of shock but still a sparkle of intrigue in everyone’s eyes. I missed the first few scenes because I was late (got to keep the ‘punctual’ reputation going), but at the point I entered, I had Nomise, Aladdin and TJ giving me eyes of dismay…. I was feeling like they were not too happy with the script and I was right!

After an entertaining read through, we had a round the room feedback session and it was fantastically explosive! There was a general consensus that there wasn’t enough of the ‘stories’ that came out of the workshops in the script and that some of the scenes were a little too ‘sweet’ or unrealistic, especially the ending…. Of course I can’t tell you anything about the script because it will spoil the surprise of the hit film we are going to make so you’ll have to wait to see it on SBS next year!

Some great articulate feedback and critiquing went down and Mojgan was hit with a big shock at the crew’s reaction, but in the end, I think we were all happy with the outcome. Mojgan will go away now and write a second draft, but this time working more closely, as in one to one with the participants. to script dialogue direct from their mouths and to develop scenes and characters further…

For me it’s salam alaikum… I won’t be doing a weekly installment on the website as of today but I will check in and write something as the project develops further….

To the crew, I’ll see you at the video workshops next week and thankyou for blessing me with the chance to get to know you all so well…. Your amazing people who will do amazing things…mark my words!

To TJ –it was a blast working with you…thankyou for allowing me to learn from your skill and vigour… to Claudia – you rock baby. To Mojgan…you are truly inspiring and a beautiful soul… and of course to Irishman Enda…thankyou for giving us the opportunity to simply do what we love – create!
Salam and see you
Patrick

:: Patrick 3:19 PM [+] :: ...