Participate in your life

We believe that if people are able to make choices and decisions in their fantasy or in an imaginary world, they are going to be able to do so in real life as well.

PARTICIPATE IN YOUR LIFE

Five theatre companies have through 2018-22 established the network “Participate in your life” exploring interactivity in children’s theatre through discussions and workshops. Fall 2021 the network hosted an open conference about interactivity and participation in children’s theatre in Bergen, Norway, where we invited a broad spectre of artists from all over Europe. August 2022 will be the premiere of an interactive performance the partners in the network will make together.

THE TOWER OF BABEL - PLANET EARTH / GAME OVER / RESET - 2022

Combining five European theatre companies work of interactive theatre, the "Tower of Babel" is a groundbreaking work of interactive art. The performance includes a young audience (age 14-16) both in the preliminary face of the production, in the rehearsals, and in the final performance.

Directed by the award-winning norwegian director Hilde Brinchmann, the companies will explore the possibilities of theatrical interactivity. In an epic, visual and engaging performance, the young audience will experience a theatrical adventure they will remember for the rest of their lives.

The performance begins after the collapse of the earth's ecosystem. Humans live in isolated tribes that do not communicate. The participants (age 14-16) are participants who are invited into an immersive imaginary world of scenography, lighting, sound and costumes. They are divided into four tribes and together with the actors, they embarc on a dangerous journey. Can the tribes finally work together to give the world a fresh start? We will open up for real choices from the young people, which will determine how the show unfolds and ends.

See the official Lithuanian website about the project here.

JOIN IN CONFERENCE - 2021

Sept 30 - Oct 2 2021, the Participate in your life network hosted the JOIN IN conference in Bergen, Norway, consisting of key notes, workshops, discussions and interactive performances.

Our aim was to explore the topic of interactivity and audience participation in performing arts for children and youth and to discuss these three questions:

What can the young audiences learn from the art experience itself?
How can interactivity and active participation in theatre make way for new art forms and expressions?
Can involving the audience stimulate stronger democratic processes in society?

Background of the project:
In 2018, in collaboration with the Hungarian theatre company Káva Kulturális Mühely, K:13 invited three other theatre groups from the Nordic-Baltic countries to establish a new network with the aim to exploring interactivity and participation in theatre for children and youth.

Káva Kulturális Mühely has long experience with this method and has previously cooperated with K:13 in making performances for children built on Henrik Ibsens Peer Gynt. This cooperation was founded by EEA-Grants. K:13 made the performance «Peer Gynt – God`s choice», while Káva's production was simply named "Peer Gynt". This collaboration was named «A trip around the onionskin», and both companies met several times during the project period. Káva hosted a Peer Gynt symposium in Budapest in April 2017, where both performances were presented, including discussions with the participants. This collaboration has led to an new knowledge for K:3 on the topic of theater for young audiences.

The main aim of this project is to exchange artistic methods and approches: to get to know each other's cultural background and to ensure know-how transfer. In the future the members of this network should be able to create international projects on different areas of performativity. Our long-term goal is to create a platform of knowledge where the partners connect performative tools and participation, concentrating on children and youngsters. We hope that the project can stimulate other artists.

Partners:

K:13 - Bergen, Norway
Káva Kulturális Műhely - Budapest, Hungary
Nathional Kaunas Drama Theatre - Kaunas, Lithuania
Teater Allena - Karlskrona, Sweden (2018-2021)
Bird and Bat - Reykjavik, Iceland