The Legend of Europa

Tallaght is a suburb of Dublin, to the South of the city.  A bit like the areas of Bologna where Teatro dell’Argine and Cantieri Meticci operate, this is a culturally rich but cash poor, multicultural and multilingual space, an ideal location for the Irish leg of the CRE-ACTORS project. In a generation or so, much of Ireland will probably look like Tallaght. This year alone, with the government’s positive response to the arrival of refugees from Ukraine, there has been a significant demographic shift in the country.  As elsewhere in Europe, theatre and culture need to encompass this increasing diversity. It’s quite daunting to lead the last of the three CRE-ACTORS training workshops. So much has already been achieved under the remarkable leadership of the Théâtre du Soleil and Teatro dell’Argine teams. There would be no point in pretending we’re starting from nothing again. So, rather than simple “sharing our methods”, we are going to attempt to build on what has been learnt s...

Blog post responding to Bologna training On the first morning of our wonderful, inspiring week in Bologna, we were all asked to say what theatre meant for us. Ida Strizzi, from our host organisation Teatro dell’Argine, responded that theatre for her was “giving people another point of view”. For the rest of the week, and since, I’ve been using this idea as a way of thinking through and developing what we are trying to achieve in the CRE-ACTORS project and beyond.  On one level, Ida’s idea can be literal. On the second day, we were working with the challenge that our stage was limited to the top of a white stool, with everything around it considered invisible. In one glorious moment, Xevi Ribas walked his fingers across the stool as a man moving towards a tree, and the stool then rose up and was held behind his face so that we could see him bite into the apple he had picked. It was like a wide shot cutting to a close-up, but achieved with the simplest of theatrical means (which are,...

The second Cre-Actors’ training course in Bologna! An important step is approaching for the Cre-Actors project: the training course held by the Italian partners of Teatro dell’Argine in Bologna. The course will run from May 26 th to May 30 th and will involve a large group of people both locally and from the partners’ countries, Sweden, Ireland and France. In order to make the most of these 5 days, all the participants have been asked to watch and read some materials about the artistic production of the Bolognese company: videos of theatre pieces, documentaries on special projects, dossiers and descriptions about artistic creations with intercultural groups and/or in intercultural contexts. Find out more by reading the Theatre-Love Letter to the Cre-Actors and the programme below, containing detailed info on the planned process. And follow us on this blog and on our Facebook page! A Theatre-Love Letter to the Cre-Actors Dear Cre-Actors, first of all… Be welcome, bienvenu(e)s, välkom...

  The 1 st training course of the Cre-Actors' project in Paris After months of stops and closures, after several virtual meetings, after so many postponements due to the still ongoing pandemic situation, on July 26 th to 30 th 2021, the Cre-Actors crew finally convened to exchange and work in person at the same time in the same place. “ At the same time in the same place”: this is really the true specific magic of theatre, as of many rituals, be them religious or secular, providing that people gather not only to “assist” in something acted by other people, but really to live an experience together hic et nunc (here and now). And what a place to start! Our first training course was held at the Théâtre du Soleil in Paris, and precisely on the stage that was hosting the scenery (and the spirit) of the new production directed by Ariane Mnouchkine, having Dominique Jambert and Vincent Mangado as wise, skilful and smiling guides, and a crew of 18 Cre-Actors from many different place...