So popular scene in a tattoo salon

Just after introducing themselves, ten people fall down and don’t move. Sergey and Artiom start to tell their stories. They were like other young people their age - enjoyed themselves, sometimes too much. Free of everything – parents care, school uniform, responsibility and own decision making. Occasionally used drugs, interested in free sexual-affairs… became HIV positive and without knowing that, happily continued with their lifestyle. They did not win the game of AIDS, enjoyment is over.

Don’t worry. Tom is happily in Belgium, Raquel in Spain and Janne somewhere on the way. Who are these people we are talking about? Young Europeans - volunteers who decided to spend two weeks of their hard-earned holiday in Ukraine to talk about HIV in a bit different way - through theatre performances that enable everyone to understand the message in his own way. So that children and young people understand HIV in the appropriate way, two facilitators where present and mediated each scene performed by volunteers. They explained, conducted interactive games and “examined” the public while players prepared for next parts.

The tattoo salon was a favorite scene for audiences, who always unhappily finished clapping and screaming applause.

Summer - party music is swapped for a much heavier sound and volunteers performed what might happen if you say yes to drugs. Some of the children stand up to better see what’s happening on the stage.

Even after the third time seeing the scene, I had creeps goose bumps and the unique Ramstain song played in my dreams the night the workcamp was over.

For me, the romantic scene was number one (of course). Tom and Liza looked so natural and not ashamed at all. I liked how the division of tasks was shared. Inevitably, the dialog was done by Ukrainian volunteers while these two young people performed the importance of safe intercourse.

“I always spend my holiday like this, even last winter I found a workcamp and went to France to take part.” Claudia is a pretty Portuguese young lady about my age living a working student’s life.

Tom will participate with his youth group in a huge Latin-American festival after returning home, then will have to earn some money to go back to University and start his second year.

Janne will return to France after her one year as a European Volunteer (European Volunteer Service) in Bratislava, Slovakia, and hopefully do her Master degree in psychology.

I don’t want to hear that current youngsters are passive and don’t understand anything. If anyone has a problem to find some “active ones”, contact me, I can share.