In the heart of Guatemala City, children live every day in the streets, without a safe place to rest. They’re very visible – you can see them on streets begging for money, selling candy on buses, or sitting in a corner wasting away on drugs. But at the same time, they are invisible. Most people ignore them out of fear or disgust, but one person in particular treated them as family. He happened to be a professional clown, which in an ironic way was exactly what they needed.

Italo Castro spent years caring for them and began to teach several his art of clowning. He dreamed of one day having a clowning school for street youth as a way to help rehabilitate their lives. Right about the time this idea started bearing fruit, Italo drowned in a tragic accident. Both Guatemala and these children lost a hero. But death could not choke a life lived authentically.

 

 

Thankfully, some of Italo’s friends and colleagues are continuing his vision.

Street youth and professional entertainers met twice a week for over 5 months to rehearse a script titled “The Journey of A Clown”, a symbolic biography of their lives. Becoming Fools follows their journey as they prepare to share their hearts at the famous Teatro Abril in Guatemala City. The idea for the event inspired several organizations to begin collaborating together, sharing resources and developing a plan to present the issue of homelessness to the public. Guatemalan media learned of the efforts and began covering the process .. it seemed that this was larger than anyone could have imagined …

A movement had begun …

But …

A month before the event, things looked bleak. The director wrecked his motorcycle and was unable to continue with the project. The theatre needed to be paid for and the group had not been able to raise funds. And, the reality of life on the street made it difficult for cast members to leave their problems off-stage. Perhaps the idea was too grand and the goal was just not obtainable. Perhaps they were foolish for believing it could be done …

or …

Perhaps becoming fools was exactly what they needed …