Welcome to the Overwritten.net forums!
Actors dress as tramps to fight gambling Russian actors are being paid to pretend to be destitute beggars in a government scheme to discourage people from gambling.They will tell passers-by how they were once rich executives who lost everything after becoming addicted to gambling.Vladimir Platonov from Moscow city council said the plan would see the actors sent to stand outside casinos dressed as beggars.The move comes as fears grow that the city could be overrun with gambling addicts after a recent ruling by the Moscow Supreme court overturned a law that casinos could only be built outside the city.Under the scheme, which Moscow city officials claim is a world-first, actors will be selected at a special casting in front of a city council committee.It is unclear how much the actors will be paid but it is thought they will be given at least the average monthly wage in Russia of £200 to work five evenings a week.Some will even be given an instrument, such as an accordion, to turn the story into a sorrowful lament.Actor David Kirikoff who makes a living as an extra in domestic films as well as appearing in theatre productions said he wanted to play one of the beggars to do the city a service.He said: "I have seen friends and even members of my own family become addicted to gambling and I know how it ruins lives."
