Vision Statement
connectup is designed to counteract the process of increasing social and political division across our continent. We, theatres, festivals and universities working in the field of Theatre for Young Audiences (TYA), aim to develop an alternative vision of a connected society with less cultural exclusion at least within our auditoriums. During 4 years we will diversify our audience so that it more matches the actual composition (cross-section) of our changing societies. Under the guidance of professional artists, young people of all social classes, cultural backgrounds and abilities will meet, work and share experiences in various theatre processes.
All connectup activities are united by the umbrella theme “The Lives of the Others”, a practical inspiration for the theatre makers for new responsive approaches to audience development and artist professionalization.
The theme is a very conscious choice: TYA must be a political intervention! Aiming at a socially mixed auditorium it is essential TYA provides active opportunities for the target group 12+ to engage with different nationalities, cultures and social groups. In times of increasing social and political division and the development of radical nationalism, it is more important than ever that young people are encouraged to discover the reality of “other lives” and to remain open to other people, cultures and life experiences.
The chosen theme is an invitation to our audience to actively participate in cultural processes as content providers, co-creators and influencers of meaning-making processes. In the long term, they become key interlocutors of the cultural organizations and are involved in creative processes and decisions of the future artistic direction.
All connectup processes / activities will support the partners to pro-actively implement an irreversible change management process, accompanied by a strategic capacity building programme. This leads to a profound change in the mind-set of our organisations our new composed audience and our cultural environment.
Read more here