FIT
T h e a t r e / F E S T I V A L S I N T R A N S I T I O N ( F I T)
The network Theatre/FESTIVALS IN TRANSITION (FIT) involving eight festivals in eight countries was founded in 2005. Between 2005 and 2006 FIT organised a series of contemporary theatre projects and highly regarded symposia on ‘festival policy’, which took place at all the participating festivals. The notes of the symposia can be found at www.theatre-fit.org. The summary Theatre festivals – why? can be ordered also at info@spielmotor.de. With an enlarged network now involving ten festivals, from 2007 FIT embarks on a new project – a MOBILE LAB OF THEATRE AND COMMUNICATION. The festivals of the FIT network at the present moment are: SPIELART Munich, Germany
Cracow Theatrical Reminiscences, Poland Baltic Circle, Helsinki, Finland
4 x4 Days in Motion, Prague, Czech Republic Baltoscandal, Rakvere, Estonia
Homo Alibi, Riga, Latvia Divadelna Nitra, Slovakia LIFT, London, Great Britain
Sirenos, Vilnius, Lithuania Exodos, Ljubljana, Slovenia Ten European festivals focusing on contemporary theatre creation have come together to create a travelling laboratory to explore, develop and test drive innovative practices of discourse, critical writing and communication between artists, programmers and audiences in response to contemporary performance.
M O B I L E L A B O F T H E AT R E A N D C O M M U N I C AT I O N
We face the fact that much of contemporary art, and more specifically contemporary theatre and performance is not regarded as part of the public discourse within European and local cultures. On the one hand, the audience often has preconceptions about the elitist character of contemporary theatre and is afraid of “not understanding anything”. On the other hand, there is a paucity of language to engage with and communicate a contemporary theatre practice to a wider audience because journalists and theatre
critics do not have the tools and are frequently unable to follow and adapt to the fast development of new theatre forms. This project proposes that given the theatre is a communicative art form it contains the possibilities to re-enforce a dialogue between artists, programmers and audiences in response to contemporary artistic expression and the complex world in which we live. The objectives of this initiative are:
– to promote the creation of contemporary performance with a special focus on the communicative aspect of theatre
– to search for the tools to re-enforce a bridge of understanding and dialogue between artists and audiences
– to encourage a wider discussion on contemporary performing arts and their discursive potential, creating a space for critical reflection from the audience
– to develop a new generation of skilled journalists and theatre critics who can engage with the language of contemporary performance and are internationally competent
– to activate the involvement of local and national media in reflecting performing arts and reinstalling contemporary art in the public discourse.
Through carefully developed artistic programmes, public discussions, collaborations with the media and Mobile Lab workshop programmes for young theatre critics and writers, the project aims to facilitate a deeper and more wide ranging communication around contemporary art to a wider audience.
M o b i l e L a b i n K r a k o w
The topic of the series of workshops in Cracow is “Theatre As Dialogue”. Participants will be discussing strategies of communication between the stage and the auditorium and the status of the narrative in the most contemporary theatre. They will examine what determines the success of a dialogue and the different models of relationships that exist between the viewer and the performance. Their joint work will be moderated by Rok Vevar, a Slovenian critic, festival curator, director, playwright and dramatist,
editor for many years of Maska, the largest theatrical magazine in Slovenia and Rose Fenton, the former long-time director of the London LIFT festival.
