“I thought you said we don’t have electricity,” said David Tagoe to Samuel Lamptey before turning on the fan. On days when the weather is pleasant outside, the theatre doors are never shut, making it easier for bright daylight to illuminate the hall, which is otherwise very dimly lit. The soothing cool breeze is sufficient to comfort the actors awaiting directions from Lampety who directs Tagoe to turn the fan on before they practice their voice exercises. Everything including electricity needs to be carefully monitored in this theatre.
Funds have always been an issue when it comes to Jamestown Community Theatre Centre, which is now mostly occupied by young volunteers from the community itself, who associate themselves with the NGO, “Act For Change.”
“It all started when I volunteered for Theatre for Change which is a UK based NGO. We went about Jamestown, informing people about HIV Aids. I participated in multiple street plays until one day we realized, even without them (Theatre for Change), we need to do something, in our own local dialect for a change,” said Lamptey who is the program manager.
Act for Change, founded in 2010, is an initiative started by the youth of Jamestown Community who decided to resolve societal issues by ways of interactive theatre. The group that now has over 50 members across the country travels out and about Accra, informing people about issues that mainly revolve around sexual and reproductive health. Witnessing tremendous growth every year, Act for Change has partnered with various international organizations that send volunteers to Accra every year.
One such volunteer is Anett Jaeger from Germany who hardly understands the language but chuckles every time Lamptey enacts his role of a drunkard. Act For Change’s new agenda is to inform the community members about the alarming rate of increasing heart diseases in the country and Anett is their first audience.
