Nashe Maalo: Television, Theatre and Outreach Projects
Nashe Maalo ("Our Neighborhood") is the first Macedonian children's television program created to promote intercultural understanding and conflict resolution skills to children. Co-produced by Common Ground Productions and Sesame Workshop, the show follows a diverse cast of ethnic Macedonian, Albanian, Turkish and Roma children as they grapple with issues such as prejudice, stereotypes, friendship and love. Five seasons were produced and broadcast on multiple television stations in Macedonia from 1998 to 2003.
Nashe Maalo is set in an ethnically mixed apartment building in a residential neighborhood of Skopje. The children living there share a common secret--only they know that their building is alive! Karmen, the spirit of the building, acts as a mentor to the kids as they negotiate the trials and tribulations of youth and adolescent life. Using her magical powers, she gives them visions that explain the hopes, fears and beliefs that guide people's actions, thus teaching them to view situations from another person's perspective. In the process, the children learn about Macedonian cultures different than their own.
Watch a clip from Nashe Maalo
Beyond the Screen
Nashe Maalo Outreach projects were designed to help deepen the impact of Nashe Maalo TV series through various activities. The cast of Nashe Maalo were often invited to schools, institutions for children with special needs and orphanages to speak to the progam's themes.
Nashe Maalo Live!
Based on the characters and themes of Nashe Maalo , two dramas were produced for children ages 11-15, and performed in 12 cities throughout Macedonia. The theater involved direct communication between the audience and the cast: following each show, children took part in a facilitated discussion about the play. They have an opportunity to ask questions, make comments, or otherwise explore the experience. Combined with community-based performance, this project offered an accessible, grassroots arts program that helped overcome ethnic divisions.
The Music of Nashe Maalo
The audiocassette and the CD contain a collection of songs that are related to the series and shares its message. Music serves as another entertaining way of bringing fundamental values of Nashe Maalo into the lives of Macedonian children. Some of the artists who volunteered to sing for this CD are among the best-known musicians in Macedonia.
The songs are in Macedonian, Albanian, Turkish, and Roma, while some songs combine multiple languages.
Parent-Teacher Guide
The guide includes synopses of all Nashe Maalo episodes and focues on the main massages that each episode aimed to convey. It will also include different activities and discussion questions. An electronic version was made available online, and 90,000 hard copies were printed in three languages.
Quiz Show
This knowledge-based quiz started in 2004, coinciding with re-runs of Nashe Maalo on the national television. Viewers answered content-related questions and submited answers to SFCG, receiving Nashe Maalo CD's as prizes.
Children's Magazine
The first and the second issue of Nashe Maalo Magazine were printed in 185,000 copies, in Macedonian, Albanian and Turkish languages. The magazine has a wide selection of activities for children, and the information about Nashe Maalo TV program. There are descriptions of Nashe Maalo characters and their hobbies, activity games, knowledge-based games, information about the main religious holidays of all Nashe Maalo's featured ethnicities, and the quiz questions.
Distribution of the magazine is organized through the regional branches of the Ministry of Education. Free copies of the magazine are distributed to every child in Macedonia within the age group 7 to 12.
Children's Puppet Theatre
SFCG produced three intended-outcome puppet theatre plays, in partnership with the Children's Theatre Center from Skopje. The shows were designed for children ages 7-9, and performed in 12 cities throughout Macedonia. The plays' messages were carefully designed, age-appropriate and provided new ways for children to perceive themselves in a pluralistic society. Each performance was followed by facilitated interactive dialogue that will reinforce messages from the play. Magic Horse, the first puppet play attracted 3,603 children, while 748 of them participated in a facilitated discussion and evaluation.
One of the main objectives of the project was to develop a local team with necessary skills to conceptualize, design and produce intended-outcomes children's drama on a sustainable basis.
