Dance Presentation: Pepe and The Flying Balloon
Please join us for a special dance presentation of “Pepe and The Flying Balloon” By Melissa Sunjaya as performed by the children of Kampus Diakonia Modern (KDM).
When: 12 December 2014 at 7:00 PM 13 December 2014 at 3:00 PM
Where: Erasmus Huis, H.R. Rasuna Said Kav. S-3, Jakarta 12950
Artistic Direction & Choreography by Lauri Kee Schep & Anne Rooze
Tulisan, Chance to Dance, and Erasmus Huis are proudly teaming up to present a contemporary dance performance by the children of KDM. This special event is a continuation of Tulisan’s ongoing commitment to helping children in need. KDM (Kampus Diakonia Modern) is a non-profit organization dedicated to rescuing abandoned children from the streets of Jakarta. Since 1972 KDM has annually provided shelter and education to 60-70 neglected children.
Inspired by the creative energy of these children, Tulisan founder Melissa Sunjaya sought to create a simple project that would teach them valuable life skills while creating a product, which through its sales, would be beneficial and self-sustaining. Thus, she created Pepe, the whimsical little doll who stars in his own illustrated adventure, “Pepe and The Flying Balloon.”
Melissa along with her team from Tulisan held special workshops with children at KDM and taught them how to craft the beloved Pepe dolls using Tulisan’s surplus fabric
scraps. To date this project has sold more than 1700 Pepe dolls, earning more than IDR 165,000,000, with all profits benefiting KDM. The sale of each doll, handmade by the children themselves, provides a child at KDM with, a proper meal for five days, a week of schooling, 6 months’ worth of learning materials, or ten visits to the local healthcare center.
In 2013, choreographers Lauri Kee Schep and Anne Rooze, from the Chance to Dance Foundation volunteered at KDM to teach children the fundamentals of contemporary dance. Chance to Dance is a non-profit organization which helps underprivileged children to realize their dreams of dancing. Chance to Dance believes that through dance children are able to build their self-esteem, improve their self-confidence, and master teamwork. They believe that all children deserve the opportunity to dance. After two months of practicing with children from KDM the results were phenomenal: dancing, just like Pepe, had given the children confidence and hope. Thus the idea to join forces with Tulisan and merge the charitable projects evolved and soon the children and their choreographers had created a special rendition of “Pepe and the Flying Balloon” for all to enjoy!
– Tulisan Chronicles Team
