Support ASHTAR's main programmes (core fund)

Dear Supporters,

In the face of continued devastation: daily killings and woundings in Gaza, mass imprisonment and torture across Palestine, systematic infrastructure destruction, increased restrictions on movement and countless hours wasted in traffic, and ever-increasing Israeli Jewish colonial settler violence resulting in 2 Palestinians killed within the last two weeks, ASHTAR Theatre stands firm in its mission to resist, to connect, and co-create space for continuity and future.

With our never ending gratitude for standing with us, we are in haste to let you know what we have managed to achieve since the last report (to name a few!).

We have managed to maintain our staff and continued our core work despite unprecedented financial and political pressures. This has only been possible thanks to your support and solidarity.

Our wonderful Youth Acting School is now at the end of their third year, with preparations underway to rehearse for the end of year performance scheduled in August to embark on their final fourth year of the school. We are now opening admissions for the new cohort starting from September for another four-year training cycle. These young people will become the next generation of Palestinian storytellers and cultural leaders. You can sponsor a year long education of a young student by donating to this campaign with a note: Youth Acting School.

We also launched Nabadat – Heart-Beats, a series of psycho-social theatre workshops and stress-relief activities. These sessions offer safe spaces for communities to process trauma, strengthen resilience, and reconnect through creativity while honing practical tangible acting skills. One of the participants said: "It was more like an inner journey deep into myself… I suddenly felt my voice is not just a tool for speaking, but an extension of everything I feel and a mirror of what’s happening inside me. I left the workshop feeling as light as a butterfly, as if I had shed something heavy or taken a deep breath for the first time in a long while.”

In Amari refugee camp, we concluded a series of psycho-social interventions with vulnerable UNRWA school communities, helping children and teachers develop coping mechanisms in extremely challenging conditions. One of the young school students said: “This was the first time I felt safe to speak my mind.” We are preparing our school-based intervetnions to restart from September 2025.

We remain in close contact with the original Gaza Monologues writers. Many have faced repeated displacement, loss of homes, and unimaginable hardship. We continue to support them with small financial assistance, basic needs, and opportunities to keep their voices alive. 

The Gaza Monologues campaign continues to grow. We are now in touch with many new and returning groups reading the texts globally. Notably, the group Te Nel Deserto in Italy recently organised a new series of readings, bringing the total number of countries where the Monologues have been read to 63.

At the same time, with our artistic director Emile Saba, we are developing a new play that explores the complexity and diversity of Palestinian identities - reclaiming our narrative in the face of attempted erasure and fragmentation.

Importantly, this September marks 35 years of ASHTAR’s continued work. As we look ahead, we invite you to become our partner and monthly supporter in making the next collective dream a reality: the renovation of a new building in Birzeit, near Ramallah, which will house a full-time two-year Performing Arts Academy for acting and psycho-social healing. Here we will train a new generation of resilient, creative, and internationally connected theatre makers - rooted in Palestine, reaching the world.

Your continued support makes all of this possible. Thank you for standing with us, for amplifying Palestinian voices, and for believing in theatre as a powerful tool for freedom, healing, and change.

From the bottom of our hearts, 
Konrad Suder Chatterjee on behalf of ASHTAR Theatre Team