The main goal of this Voice-funded project by Phare Ponleu Selpak is to strengthen the rights, empower for behavioural change and improve living standards of people of old age, people living with disability, LGBTI and women victim of violence. Within the project space is created for professional theatre artists of Phare Association to work together with people of the target groups who are living in Reksmeay Steng Sangke Community (former slum areas) in Battambang town, Srah Keav Village, Kampong Preah Commune, Sangke district, Anhchanh village, Ou Char Commune and Krong Battambang. It intends to use discussion theatre as a unique form of art and as a means to raise the concerns that the target groups are facing. They create scenarios for performance and come up with solutions to resolve their problems through the performers. The concerns raised and solutions developed are offered to the respective community. This project also intends to make the target group aware of their own problems and come up with their own solutions to address it.

The project “Using performance art to promote inclusion in slum areas” by the Phare Ponleu Selpak (PPS) Association strengthened the rights of marginalised women who were discriminated against – either because of their age, disability or being a transman, and became victim of domestic violence from 3 different communities in former slum areas in Battambang province. It organised 52 training and event sessions for 12 women living in the former slum areas who had experienced domestic violence and were discriminated against, including 32 training sessions on theatre, 10 agriculture workshops, and 10 theatre forum performances in the community, school, and university. 

The project led to a significant change to the life of the 12 women who had experienced domestic violence and were being discriminated against in their communities. They were empowered to raise their voice and issues using art performances to share their real stories of facing domestic violence and discrimination in their communities. The 12 women gained the confidence to raise their voice and issues on domestic violence in their community and engage with the audience to share solutions through theatre forums and art performances in the community. 

Aside from performing skills, the 12 women reported gaining knowledge on problem-solving with more confidence to face and deal with their family issues. They were able to create a safe space and build trust among each other to express their problems and seek help through theatre workshops. It was observed that the 12 women built their confidence and believed in themselves more than before. Theatre training and performance supported them to be aware of their problems, learn how to control them, and bring up solutions to address them. And as they shared their problems and brought them into group discussions, they became more aware of the root problems and how the communities affect their lives. Moreover, they received ideas and advice on how to address their challenges from participants and audiences who attended the theatre forums in their communities. 

Through the theatre workshop, the 12 women were able to become influencers in their communities and contribute to changing the behaviour of their families. Overall, they were observed to have more influence on decision-making within their families that led to reduced numbers of domestic violence across the 3 communities. In total, the women influenced over 1200 people through their theatre performances, including their family members and other people in the communities. They also gained knowledge on how to control and respond to conflicts, including where to seek help. At the same time, they were able to learn skills on organic home gardens from an NGO partner of PPS that contributed to improving their economic empowerment. They became role models on leadership in many ways, for example by leading their communities in raising funds to renovate the access road to their villages.

The 12 women plan to use theatre art as a tool to change the community and contribute to social development. They want to continue to strengthen their skill to become professional theatre performers. To achieve that, a new project is going to create and focus on more advanced theatre training, professional theatre group creation, and theatre awareness creation that will involve their family members and more engage with local authorities. Besides using theatre as a tool for community empowerment, the women also want to create more economic opportunities for themselves and their communities. 

Publications: 

Video on the baseline and first performance of the women groups on “My problem, My solution”.