A Year in Guatemala: Peter Pan Chapin Style

The cast before the first show!

This is a much overdue post but.....

Over the past three months I have been helping out with NPH's production of Peter Pan. Some of the older kids at NPH had shown interest in theatre and asked if they could put on Peter Pan so Meghan, another volunteer, and a bunch of us translated the script into Spanish, with the help of some of the older kids, with Guatemalan references and got the ball rolling. We held auditions and then once the parts were casted we practiced twice a week for over three months. With the help of Tio Sergio, a tio here at NPH, they kids participated in different acting exercises and activities and practiced songs, dances and scenes for the play. The kids were even given the opportunity to go into Antigua and partake in acting workshops at el Sitio, a cultural center in Antigua.

Getting ready for the first show at NPH!

The Indians showing off their body paint!

Peter Pan and Tiger Lily!

Captain Hook and the crocodile!

Putting on the show at NPH in the comedor.

The cast of kids, which was around 50 pequeños from 10 years old to 25, worked hard until the last show. They helped to paint the big pieces of fabric we got for each of the scenes and they helped gather props and put together costumes. As time grew nearer we began to run out of funds for most of the costumes, but Caleb and Jenn gratefully donated 100$ which was enough money to buy all of the costumes, all of the makeup, print out a picture for each of the cast members and have a pizza party after the show was over. A little amount of money goes a long way here.

After working hard and practicing for three months we presented NPH's version of Peter Pan twice here at the home and once at the cultural center in Antigua. It was such an amazing opportunity for the kids to partake in the play and work hard towards something that had such an amazing turnout. It was a lot of hard work and big time commitment, but such a rewarding experience.