Theater in Bursa

One of our brothers, who is a theater artist, has a saying that I like very much, “In Turkey, 7 out of every 5 people are poets and 10 are theater actors”. This is a sentence that describes our people's perspective on art with a humorous approach. We are enthusiastic about art, there is an artist in all of us, but we do not tend to these branches because branches such as painting and music require a little more effort and the product can be evaluated more objectively. But if we can line up four sentences one after the other and bring a little rhyme to the end, we are all poets. If someone got a little gassy, if we accidentally took the stage in high school and university, there is no bigger actor than us.

Conclusion; There were years when the number of theaters that applied for permission to make children's theaters to the National Education in Bursa exceeded 80. According to a rumor, there were years when it reached 140. If you ask, as someone who has been doing theater in Bursa for 20 years, I either know 3 of them or not. A friend of mine, who has been doing theater in Bursa for years, recently entered into a new formation and established a new theater. He says he couldn't find a name. He says that whatever name we think of, a theater was established with that name, most of them are still alive, but the name is circulating on the internet. Every enthusiastic person gets together, gives a name and establishes a theatre. He immediately dives headlong into the children's theater to earn money, after all, I make the children laugh with two flips and a jump. When I leave half the money to school, the organized audience is ready. We don't have to worry about the stage, we play on the makeshift stages of the schools. National Education already gives permission for friends to see it while shopping, everyone who applies can get permission if they have completed the necessary documents. (Ministry of Education wants a CD, but love to those who can find out who evaluates what. Last year, they allowed a play we prepared for kindergartens, which was mild even for the 2nd grade, to play at the 2nd level) Who cares how children watch theater, it will create a trauma, a wrong effect, What does the wrong message matter next to the money coming in? You know, besides those who think they are doing theater with good intentions, there is a serious group that does these things just for profit and also uses the enthusiasts we mentioned above. This is a problem experienced not only in Bursa but throughout Turkey.

In a country where there are so many children's theaters, shouldn't it make sense that adult theater audiences will skyrocket, theaters will overflow with audiences, new texts will fly in the air? We see, even in Bursa Nilüfer, one of the most enlightened and cultured regions of Turkey, with a population of 300 thousand, you cannot find 3 thousand theater audiences. Do not look at the fact that all the games brought by the municipality are full, the festivals are stuck, the same audience is returning in all the games, after all, the biggest hall Fethiye Cultural Center is 1100 people. Other halls are for 300-400 people. The real audience will be determined by the City Theater established by the Nilüfer Municipality, and an extraordinary advertisement work is being carried out. With billboards, internet support, monthly programs, actors and directors brought from Istanbul, the halls normally have to be packed, and even if it is full, an expense is incurred that cannot even cover the municipal ticket prices and advertising costs. in the direction of more than 50%. Don't be misunderstood, this is not something I criticize, it's an observation. In fact, the best things that have been done for theater in Bursa for 20 years, which I have witnessed, are today, with the support of Nilüfer Municipality, especially to private theaters, maybe theater will really develop in Bursa. But imagine how private theaters would fill their halls with unrecognized actors from TV series without this support, and at higher prices.

But first, it is necessary to clean up starting from the children's theater, the audience will first of all make the children love the theater and make them watch quality plays. Here, the biggest task falls first on the trainers and then on the parents. Because children do not choose what to watch, adults decide and put it in front of them. Adults will first decide what their children will watch, where and how, and then they will ensure that their children receive the right art education, learn what is what when they are young, introduce them to art, lead a life in peace with art, and become consumers of art. Let's not forget that it is only possible for our children to reach a virtuous and peaceful world with art. And art isn't just about reciting 4 sentences that rhyme, impersonating a singer-songwriter.