Rangashankara

Theatre for Toddlers: Tam Ta Ram Ta

(Show Timings: 11 am and 5 pm)

Over the years, Ranga Shankara has truly been able to diversify its scope with the AHA! Theatre for Children Programme, making an investment in the future. Now we bring to you “Theatre For Toddlers” -- a step ahead.  It is perhaps the first time any institution in India is consciously beginning to create theatre for children between the ages of 18 months and 30 months.
The process began three years ago, when Ranga Shankara brought down plays for the very young like The Great Lalula and Garbage Mouse. We then offered a Pedagogy Workshop for 12 theatre pedagogues from around the country. Conducted by Anna Gorath and Marcela Herrera, theatre pedagogues who have specialised in Theatre for Toddlers. Following this project, a follow-up session was organised in March this year. This intensive workshop with Herrera focused on methods to devise pieces for toddlers. Both legs of the workshop were supported by the Goethe Institut/Max Mueller Bhavan and the National School of Drama in Delhi.
Two participants from the workshop – Samta Shikhar and Padmavathi Rao are going to present their pieces at this year's AHA! Festival. As we're at the threshold of something very important and SMALL, the participants share their experience on the process.

Tam Ta Ram Ta (40 minutes)
Devised and created by Padmavathi Rao

Synopsis The play ‘Tam ta ram ta’, designed for children between one-and-a-half years and three years of age takes toddlers through a sensorial journey. The yet- to- become familiar world is explored through the experience of sounds and music. The theme of transformation is delved into through processes of construction, deconstruction and re-building. Tam ta ram ta is an endeavour to find wonder and delight in everyday objects and experiences hoping to lay the foundations for curiosity.


Padmavathi Rao:
“When we began work on Tam ta ram ta the only thing we were sure of that music would be an integral part of the production. That's how the name came to be. Given the age group, we decided to stick to just four notes around which all the music was to evolve. Another certainty was that we would work with junk along with other everyday objects to create sounds and music.
We tossed up questions that we wanted to answer in innovative or well-tested ways. For example :  What does sunrise or sunset mean to us? How do we arrive at a story that primarily begins with materials as a source? How do we include a philosophy, introduce a cultural detail in the most simple manner?

We hope you enjoy these presentations of new, emerging theatre for the very young as much as your children do.