Critique of the play SPIRIT OF FOREST

Nature is renewing itself

author: Divna Stojanov

On the table covered with green and blue canvas, with the help of small puppets, instrumental music and jibribish language, actor Elder Kloster told the audience the story of the Man who destroys nature out of obsession.

The non-verbal puppet show Spirits of Forest, produced by Cia Elder Kloster from Brazil, begins with a picture of the wilderness made of figurines of animals and trees, which man soon destroys by cutting down the forest, causing fires and throwing garbage into the sea. The play heavily relies on South American folklore, and the destroyed and burned nature is saved by spirits from Brazilian mythology - Sasi Parere, Jara and Kurupira, protectors of the forest and water. What is confusing in terms of ideas is the solution in which Man did not accept his own responsibility for the destruction of nature, but good spirits instead solved the problem of pollution. It would be much more educational for children if man learned why he should not throw garbage behind him and then why he should clean it with the help of divine beings.

The man did not repair the damage until the end of the show, but he managed to save the unconscious spirits who got entangled in the USB cable, got stuck under a mobile phone or internet router, got entangled in the wires of the substation. Thus, technology is portrayed as a polluter of our planet and generally opposed to nature. Deforestation and draining of rivers for the development of industry or the production of electricity from fossil fuels is an ecological problem, and even an ecological catastrophe, but the existence of technology itself and its use is not harmful to nature. It is possible that the author's intention was to say that we have become inattentive to the nature that surrounds us due to the constant use of technology, but still, the message had to be unequivocally clearly conveyed, especially to children who handle technical devices every day.

The performance of the talented actor was enchanting. The speed of imitating voices of the animals, funny voice illustrations of human emotions, the ways of animating puppets and the fantastic transitions from showing the world on land to reviving life at the bottom of the sea, were excellently practiced. Everything that the actor, as well as the director, set designer and puppet designer put to the table and arrange, became an extremely harmonious image.

The music of the play (Alan Cesar Soares), relying on the original music of Brazil, additionally built the atmosphere of the stage space and followed the dynamics of the action. I think it would come to an even greater expression if the audience were placed much closer to the actor and his play space.

I would especially praise the instructive moment that followed at the very end when the author reads the names and explains the myth of every forest spirit, which brought the culture of another nation closer to the children.

In addition to a very important theme, imaginative settings and style of animating objects and implementing folk mythology in the play, it seems that certain elements of the story (resolution and motive for the use of modern technology) are not so well thought out. Since the actor is really having fun on the stage, reminding of a child playing in his/her room, it can be assumed that with each performance he improves the show more and more, so I believe that, with the help of forest spirits, he will come upon even better ecological story.