Play is at the heart of all of Seenaryo’s work — and we take play seriously, using it as a powerful tool for learning, connection, and transformation.

During Showbuilds, participants create their own costumes and sets with the support of our team of artists.

Our Showbuild in the Bekaa Valley, Village of Wonders, told the story of a village whose water supply is cut off – until an unlikely duo, a dinosaur and an ant, team up to set things right.

Music is a big part of Showbuilds and as part of the creative process we lead activities that support participants to develop and write their own song lyrics, which they later perform.

Our first creative team was made up of our co-founders, a visiting musician from the UK, and a movement director and set designer based in Lebanon. Today all of our projects are 100% led by local communities.

This show in the Bekaa Valley follows the the story of a prince’s lost crown – coveted by all, but corrupting anyone who wears it.

Our first theatre Cycle with children in Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley in partnership with Women Now for Development.

This performance in Shatila refugee camp takes a look at what happens in a city when humans start behaving like animals.

One of our first and longest standing partners is Women Now for Development, who support Syrian women and girls affected by war, displacement, and gender-based oppression.

Movement and dance are a big part of our performances and our theatre artists support participants to develop their own choreography.

Teachers from a school supported by Caritas delivering Seenaryo Playkit activities in their classroom.

A choir performance in the Bekaa Valley with our partners Women Now for Development.

The ensemble celebrating after performing in our first women’s theatre production in Lebanon.

A cross country party between Shatila refugee camp and London’s Southbank centre, where we live-streamed a community created playlist to the Royal Festival Hall.

In this production, a volcano erupts gold – is this the kind of tale we tell our children? After all, they say there’s no smoke without fire…

Our first show in Jordan told the story of a village that had lost all its colour. Could the villagers solve the mystery, confront the lonely dragon, and bring colour back to their world? This production was later adapted into a children’s storybook, The Queendom of Colours.

Our first Studio production brought together Syrian, Palestinian, and Lebanese participants to challenge polarisation. The show was an adaptation of Franz Kafka’s play, interwoven with their own personal stories of transformation.

We began developing a cross-country production with a women’s group in Lebanon and another in the UK, which was showcased the following year.

The cast of The Metamorphosis After Franz Kafka performed at Al Madina Theatre, one of Beirut’s leading independent cultural venues. The theatre has long been a hub for diverse artistic voices.

In this colourful Showbuild, the people long for their queen to grant their sugary wishes. But will she give them what they want – or something entirely unexpected?

Working with displaced and migrant women in London and Syrian refugees in Lebanon, What’s Far Is Near connected audiences across borders, long before anyone had heard of Zoom.

This production was created in Jordan in partnership with Collateral Repair Project who remain close partners of ours today.

This comedic drama for children told the story of Shajarat al-Durr, the first female leader in the Islamic world. Touring across Lebanon, the cast also led post-show workshops where children explored the play’s themes.

During the Thawra in Lebanon in October 2019, the Seenaryo team joined the streets and created a mural for change with children.

Developed by youth in Jordan and inspired by regional fairytales and 1001 Nights, this show delved into the depths of imagination and childhood fears.

Our cross-country music video created with over 150 participants across Jordan and Lebanon.

A show developed with children from the Khandaq el Gamiq area of Beirut, who were affected by the 2020 port explosion. This was one of 13 projects that responded to the explosion.

Having been piloted as a book and CD, in 2020 the Seenaryo Playkit launched as a mobile phone app.

This community created music video speaks to the trials of the year 2020. The chorus lyrics begin: I’m speaking to the little bird, I want to have my voice heard.

Our at-home learning programme, developed for Covid-19, delivered to over 9,500 families via WhatsApp.

Created by 22 Jordanian, Sudanese, Yemeni and Somali women in Amman through a collaborative process, House of Hope blended film and theatre to share their real-life stories.

In 2021, after being selected as one of Expo 2020 Dubai’s 120 Global Innovators, we were invited to showcase the Seenaryo Playkit as one of 38 global organisations advancing the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

During lockdown, we held our first residency at Hammana Artist House, bringing together women from Beirut and the Bekaa Valley to create TILKA. Their creative journey was captured on film and released as a documentary two years later.

This two-day online festival showcased nine theatre performances created by 100 participants in Lebanon & Jordan during lockdown.

A tale of friendship, exile and forgiveness, The Queendom of Colours is an adaptation of the very first Seenaryo show written by children in Jordan. This bilingual picture book in Arabic and English is available to purchase in Seenaryo’s online shop.

This trip was a journey that was nearly three years in the making – and we still didn’t manage to secure visas until the day everyone had to fly. The large majority of the ensemble, many of whom were Palestinian, had never set foot on an aeroplane before.

This Showbuild was developed with children at the Dar Al Aytam Islamiya care home – long-time partners of Seenaryo since children in care became a greater focus of our work after 2018.

Training the trainers is central to how Seenaryo scales its impact. Through the Playkit, we train trainers who go on to train teachers working directly with children.

Collaborating with Women Now for Development and The Alliance of Domestic Workers in Lebanon, this show follows women working in an underground launderette. As the laundry spins, they share their dreams and unspoken truths, briefly escaping reality.

Seenaryo Jordan worked in Palestine for the first time, carrying out Theatre Leadership Training for a group of young theatre makers at Al-Harah Theatre in Beit Jala.

Seenaryo’s award-winning documentary is an intimate portrait of five women who meet to create an original play with Seenaryo amid Lebanon’s collapse.

Seenaryo’s Theatre Leadership Training won a 2023 Charity Award in the Arts, Culture & Heritage category – the UK charity sector’s most prestigious recognition.

This studio production in Jordan followed a group of young, hungry people living beneath a bridge, letting imagination fill their bellies – and craving love, success, and happiness.

As part of Seenaryo’s suite of classroom management ideas for teachers, we encourage check-ins as a way for students to express themselves, build trust, and create a more supportive learning environment.

Seenaryo hosts a library of Interactive Stories within the Playkit, where we encourage teachers to bring their stories to life by acting them out with their class. In Exploring Spring, two children create the shape of an egg with one child acting as a chick in the middle.

An ensemble of young people performed their play CATS six times across Jordan, from major stages in Amman to local community centres, reaching 630 audience members. The play explored the refugee experience in Jordan, through the eyes of a cat, and was performed as part of UNHCR’s Refugee Week activities.

HundrED selected the Seenaryo Playkit as one of their top 100 education innovations to watch out for (selected from over 3000 applicants). They also awarded us a Resilience in Action Award for our emergency work in Lebanon and Palestine.

In the summer we trained 52 teachers in Ramallah, in the West Bank, to teach through play. It marked our first time training teachers in Palestine.

Throughout the war in Lebanon, we supported the mental health and learning of 700 displaced people across Lebanon through theatre and play sessions.

Helen Hayes MP hosted a screening of our filmTILKA in parliament. Seenaryo’s co-founder Victoria Lupton spoke alongside Joseph Willets (CABU) and Maha Shuayb (CLS).