Bhubaneswar, Aug. 26: Children and adults got lessons in theatre at a workshop organised in Sambalpur by the city-based Adrusha Natya Ashram.

The fourth edition of the three-day workshop concluded on Sunday. Prominent theatre personalities taught the basics to the kids and helped the older ones brush up their skills.

The resource persons for the theatre camp included three alumni of the National School of Drama and all three hailed from Odisha. Well-known director Surya Mohanty, Ramachandra Sahoo and popular film actor in Odia films as well as many Hindi television serials, Manoj Mishra gave sessions on various aspects of theatre at the workshop.

Every day, kids were given basic skills of acting, writing plays and scripts and directing during a five-hour session in the first half of the day.

There were 120 kids between the age group of 8 and 14 at the workshop from schools in Sambalpur. They too seemed to enjoy the experience. The second session in the day was for artistes in the age group of 16 to 45. This group included 30 amateur artistes, who were taught “Realistic approach in acting”. They were taught to unlearn over expressing or loud deliberation of dialogues. Also, they were given tips to alter body language accordingly with varying emotions.

“Unlike kids, elders have rigid notions of acting that is tough for them to unlearn and rediscover realistic approach,” said Surya Mohanty.