Day 197 - All The World's A Stage

Before I left for Doha, I thought there would be nothing to do there except work. I read the Overseas Briefing Center's cultural guide to Saudi Arabia which recommended bringing every book I ever wanted to read and every movie I ever wanted to watch with me as well as jigsaw puzzles, board games, and all the supplies for every hobby I had considered taking up so that would have enough to keep myself busy. So I did. But I never unpacked any of them.

I also wrote to the person who was in the position that I would be taking up to ask if he knew whether there was an orchestra such as the German School orchestra that I could join.  I liked the idea of finding an activity that would happen more than just once a month, like the German School orchestra was for me in Iran and Metropolitan Club in Germany. So when I arrived in Doha, many of the local employees had heard of my interest in music. But alas, no one knew of an orchestra I could join.

I began looking around for a club to join. There were many, such as the American Women's Club, the Natural History Club, a Photography Club, an Archeology Club, but most of them met only once a month and then only during the months that school was in session. The wives and children of many of the expats in Doha would return to their home countries for the summer since Doha in the summer was really hot, not just the blast furnace hot of the evening in October when I arrived.

Image of sand yachts by StormyDog, via Flickr.com

There were other clubs that met more often, but usually they involved expensive equipment or special skills - yachting, scuba diving, sand yachting, rally driving, golfing - they were all there. But I had no yacht, scuba gear, sand yacht, rally car, or golf clubs. I also wasn't sure I was interested in those activities.

I did find one club that looked like a good option - the Doha Players. Most of the members were Brits. I think I was the only American member when I joined. They seemed particularly pleased to have an American, but perhaps that was because of something I learned later, they had plans to put on some American plays and they weren't sure where there were going to find props. But that's another story.

The Doha Players started out as a play reading activity. Interested persons gathered monthly and sat around someone's home reading out the parts to a play. As the interest grew, the need for a larger place to gather also grew so some of the members approached the companies they worked for to see if they could get donations to purchase materials for a building. Keeping the expats busy among their own communities and therefore away from the Qatari community was a compelling enough argument that many businesses donated not only money but also their staff to help construct the building. By the time I arrived, Doha Players was 10 years old and had a purpose-built theater complete with professional sound and light system and an adjoining, all-purpose building where refreshments could be served and parties and meetings could be held. By then, Doha Players had established a tradition of producing six plays a year. As soon as one play closed, the set was taken down, designs for the new set were developed, auditions were held for the next play, and after six weeks of rehearsals, the play would be shown for two weeks and the pattern would begin again.

I knew that I wouldn't get involved in the acting. I would never have enough spare time to learn lines and attend rehearsals. But I was willing to knock in some nails and paint the set, tasks that could be done whenever I had time, not on the third Tuesday of each month at 6:30 p.m. for one hour, the typical schedule of the groups that met monthly. And I hoped I would meet some people from outside the U.S. diplomatic establishment. The embassy had a very small staff - the ambassador and seven Americans assigned for two-year tours, plus about 15 local employees - yet the U.S. embassy was the second largest diplomatic presence in Qatar. The largest was the British.

Image of Cinderella's step-sisters
from a British pantomime
by Dave Wilson Cumbria, via Flickr.com

Since I arrived in October, Doha Players had already begun preparations for the December production.  It is a British Christmas/New Year tradition to stage pantomimes, referred to often as pantos, for children. The best that I could do to get involved was to offer to help paint the set. On the day I arrived, there were more people than needed and no one seemed to be in charge. Everyone just set out to do what they thought was needed. I did the best I could to contribute, but everyone else seemed to know one another and I was still an outsider - an introverted outsider who hadn't learned yet how to begin a conversation.

I had attended one panto before - in Tehran in 1975 - so I knew it wasn't a silent performance by people with white faces wearing striped shirts, black pants, and white gloves. A British panto involves a children's story, such as Cinderella, which is performed in an exaggerated way by actors who switch gender roles for effect. The female lead - Cinderella - was played by a young girl, and the male lead - the prince - also played by a young girl but dressed up in men's clothing. The ugly step-sisters were played by men, in women's clothing of the most exaggerated style. Other characters, such as the king, may or may not be played by someone of the opposite gender.

image of a pantomime horse
by bounder, via Flickr.com

There are a few predictable scenes in all pantos. At some point, one of the characters begins a conversation with the audience, usually having to do with something that is lost or frightening. The character asks the audience for help in finding the lost item, or in avoiding the frightening one. Since the character is talking to the audience, his back is to the rest of the stage where action continues and the audience, especially the children, catch on that the thing that is lost or frightening is right behind the character which leads to lots of shouting, "Look behind you!" The character on stage feints being unable to hear the shouting which leads to even more and louder cries of "Look behind you," until the tension is broken in an appropriately hilarious way. There is also a typical character in all pantos, the pantomime horse. Even if the story doesn't involve a horse, somehow at some point a horse will appear.

The only other panto I had seen, in Tehran, was also Cinderella. But pantos are not just for children; they are also for adults. And that means in addition to the elements designed to delight the children, there are satirical comments about the state of affairs in the country and a double entendre or two for the adults. They are all a lot of fun so I dragged several of my embassy colleagues with me to see the show,  knowing that most of them would have no idea what was about to unfold on stage.

It took a little more than just slapping on some paint and taking out some nails for me to get involved in a meaningful way with Doha Players, but the journey began with Cinderella.

Here is a short clip from another panto, to give a taste of how my Doha Players days began.