The Yak Pack
Theatre Project
Telling tales, Trekking Theatre
The Yak Pack Theatre Project
took place in the Summer of 2018.
Its aim was to bring Theatre-in-Education
- and its well documented benefits -
to the Indian Himalayas,
performing to schoolchildren, families
and the special needs community
living in the isolated Spiti Valley.
The Spiti Valley is part of a 'tribal' region of the Indian Himalayas bordering Tibet, and its remote villages are among the highest inhabited places on earth.
Despite the Indian Education system now recognising the value of theatre in school, there is little chance of the
3000 children of the Spiti Valley having
the kind of enriching experiences at school
that our own children take for granted in the UK.
We wanted to do something to change that.
The Yak Pack at Kunzum La, a pass at around 5000m, gateway to the Spiti Valley
Children after the show at Serkong School in Tabo
We had 3 friendly little donkeys to carry the props and costumes for the show
The Yak Pack at Kunzum La, a pass at around 5000m, gateway to the Spiti Valley
We're back!
The Yak Pack Theatre Project has been an amazing success.
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We performed 13 shows, to over 1800 people (about 1500 were school children), many of whom had never seen a theatre show before. About 1 in 10 of the population of Spiti saw a performance; about 1 in 3 of the children.
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We performed in all the large schools in Spiti, met and chatted to countless teachers and educators, gave out bags of resources to enable creative learning, and booklets of ideas for using drama to inspire interesting and engaging lessons.
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We trekked to some of the highest villages on earth, performing for families at the end of the working day, bringing the joy of live theatre to people who had never seen it before.
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We performed for hard to reach audiences including retired nuns, student monks and nuns, and people with disabilities.
We have published regular updates since planning began, way back in 2016. You can read all the updates and follow our 'new news' on our blog.
Thank you!
We hit our fund-raising target of £7100!
From all of the Yak Pack and everyone in Spiti who saw the performances, a heartfelt THANK YOU goes to the hundreds of people who donated their money, time and effort into making the Project happen.
Your generosity ensured that the Project was a huge success, and we achieved everything we set out to do, and more.
The Yak Pack chat on South Today