We are in Vientiane and we want to share part of ourselves with the local people. So we started sending emails right and left to find organizations to collaborate with. We got some answers from NGOs, like Enfants du Mekong, but we also got a surprise.

A pre-school school called Santisouk Montessori had heard about our project and proposed to organize a show at their school, they would do the promotion in Vientiane, and the purpose would be to raise funds for our project !! Can you believe it ?? Without hesitation we accept, first because we could act like that, and we already had mono …, second because we could not refuse such a nice gesture that we did not expect, and third … because a little economic support is not bad for us on this long trip …

So we met with them at school, we met Caroline, the director, who told us from the first moment how excited she was to help us and show something different to her students. He also showed us the fantastic space they have at school: a great garden with grass and large trees, they wanted to jump, roll, run, jump, scream, draw a sword, defend the castle, train the dragons, return to our spaceship, cross the narrow cliff !! … ahem … sorry … what I was saying … the space was magical to make the show.

And the day arrived. For a change there were not too many people and it was time to start … so we waited a few more minutes to start … Meanwhile, we concentrated and outlined preparations, everything was ready, we took a look outside and it was full !!! There were about 100 people … Great! This promises … to start the show !!!!

Moments before leaving the music sounds, all silent, expectant, what will happen? Suddenly the painter comes out, with his absent-minded pose, dazzled by the landscape, the children start to get along with him, the first laughs begin, they have been waiting for days, but the clowns are here!

The show takes place with a complete fusion between audience and actors, the children, impatient, get up to see it closer, to interact, the atmosphere is filled with laughter, auguries and comments, all participate.

At one point, we require a volunteer and, instead of getting up alone, we are surrounded by children eager to be part of, participating in what they have already assimilated as theirs, a scene in which they want to appear! Hahahaha … so … to improvise !! Integrating the audience choir into the show we reach the end, look at the audience, sigh, and retire, leaving behind an experience full of smiles and games, with a heart full of all those who have shared this little time with us, a time that we take and we hope that everyone present also …

We can not close this experience without thanking the Santisouk Montessori pre-school school, mainly Caroline, and all the attendees, for the enthusiasm and support they have shown us, to give us more momentum in this trip and continue sharing.

The next project arrived in the most unpredictable way. We put an ad on a facebook page to see if we could represent our show Dreaming Paintings in Vientiane and Angélique, a French girl who collaborates with the NGO Enfants du Mekong, answered us. This organization has 10 centers around the world and many shelters, support thousands of children, help them in their education and prepare them to access decent work tomorrow.

We met with Angelique and we agreed on the date and time that would be convenient for us to do a workshop and performance for chic @ s between 16 and 24 years old, all from rural Laos, with no resources to invest in an education that supposes an expense that most can not afford.

Came the day. First we were to have lunch with Angélique, Mr. Tui, a very nice Laotian gentleman, founder of the center in Vientiane and responsible in Laos, there was also his wife and two volunteers from the center, Sue and Ségolène.

Mr. Tui explained to us the difficulties they had had since it was opened a year ago and how important it was for the chic @ s to know the possibilities of the future to which they can choose and thus be able to break the poverty line in which they are normally trapped .

Once inside the center we waited for everyone to arrive, young girls and boys, with faces awake, curious glances, they watched us out of the corner of our eyes … without losing any detail while they talked among themselves.

When the 48 students were there, we explained who we are and what we are doing, our trip and the purpose of that visit, while Mr. Tui translated. We described what it was supposed to be Clown for us, their faces of incomprehension were dissimulated to not seem impolite but we knew they would understand about the practice. We separated them into two groups of 24. We started warming up with the first group, completely delivered, curious so that we, making ourselves called “Clown”, could show them … As the workshop progressed more they were infected with our desire, motivation, gave everything and looked for with us the meaning of each exercise, a jewel to share these moments, So ephemeral but so out of the normal day. Time flew by !!

With the second group we substitute an exercise to be able to make a small final improvisation, in small groups. It was a success, with some shyness and stage fright they represented something of their own harvest, together, offering without skimping, perhaps for the first time in public, a small part of themselves. Relieved, they thanked us for the time together with a loud “Kop Chai Lai Lai !!”

After the workshop he played our performance. We prepare it in the patio to be able to have a green background, trees and shrubs, ideal scenario for our show. We put some stools so that everyone could sit, it was great! We went to prepare while they got impatient …

The show started! and at first the first laughs escaped. After a few hours sharing together, feeding the laugh, seeing us as clowns had to be funny … hehehe. As the show went on, the audience was more dedicated, hotter, the laughter filled the air, smiles, cries of surprise … Their faces were everything we needed, the salary we were looking for, we needed …

In the end, lots of applause, happy faces accompanying us to make it clear that they liked it a lot. A boy approached us and said: “This has been very interesting” with a sincere face and open eyes … the best we could have said … I had understood everything! I had seen beyond two people with a red ball in the nose acting in a funny way … This boy has made even more sense of our work …

And after changing, a final talk with Angelique and Sue to digest what we had lived, we left … leaving behind a beautiful day, sharing, giving and receiving love, understanding and connection at a more sincere level …

We hope that life will smile! 😉