What are the consonances between dramaturgical thinking and doing in Europe and Asia? How might these produce collaborations that span the social, political, environmental and cultural urgencies of two dramatically differing continents and contexts? What might a resulting community of practice look like?
Continental Drift: connecting Asia-Europe dramaturgies invites practitioners from both regions to embark on a collaborative journey together, culminating in a week-long gathering in the cities of Prague and Olomouc in the Czech Republic in December 2024. Participants will collectively reflect on personal praxes, share and exchange knowledge, and build a community of practice through a series of online and in-person encounters.
This programme is jointly organized and presented by the Czech Association of Independent Theatres (Asociace nezávislých divadel ČR; AND ČR) and the Asian Dramaturgs’ Network (ADN), with funding support from the Czech Ministry of Culture, the National Recovery Plan and the European Union.
From the open call, 10 participants were selected out of the 24 applications that were received! The participants are:
Arsita Iswardhani (Indonesia)
Barbara Gregorová (Czechia)
En-Ping, Yu (Prague/Taiwan)
Eva Lietavová (Czechia)
Ian Rafael Ramirez (Philippines)
Linh Valerie Pham (Vietnam)
Marc Nair (Singapore)
Matyáš Dlab (Czechia)
Oksana Maslova (Ukraine/Austria)
Riyadhus Shalihin (Indonesia)
The participants will begin the programme on 15 June 2024. Find out more about their ideas, interactions and follow the programme activities here.
– Application Period: 15 March to 15 April 2024 –
To apply:
Complete the online form
You will need to upload a bio/CV that clearly demonstrates/highlights that fulfill the below criteria.
You will need to upload a proposal or statement of intent (500 – 1000 words) that should articulate an existing or new production for which you are hoping to embark on an international collaboration to develop or stage the work. Describe the kinds of practitioners and resources you hope to be connected with through this programme and the thematic and aesthetic concerns your work hopes to address.
A strong desire to create new performance work through international collaborations. Rather than touring or adapting existing work, the applicant should have a vested interest in working with counterparts across countries and regions.
Have experience with at least one international collaboration, inclusive of developmental processes or participation in regional or international platforms such as the ADAM Artist Lab (Taiwan), BIPAM (Thailand), Bavarian Czech Platform for Independent Performing Arts (Czechia, Bavaria), or participation in international projects supported by various funds including Visegrad Funds, Creative Europe, Czech German Future Fund, and Perform Europe, or through their work in such organizations.
At least five years of professional working experience in performing arts contexts, including experience working with or as a dramaturg and/or curator, programmer, producer.
Applicants should be from Czechia and its border countries or Southeast Asian country or region. Both organizations will pay particular attention to applicants who are from or working in sociopolitically marginal or challenging geographic contexts.
Strong proficiency in English, which will be the language of communication during the online seminars and one-week exchange programme in the Czech Republic.
Selected Participants (five from SEA country/region and five from Czechia/bordering countries) have to commit to the following online and in-person gatherings:
This is the first meeting point for all participants and organizers to gather for an introduction to the programme intent, schedule, logistics and to foster an understanding of each participant’s practices.
This session invites participants to deepen their connections with each other’s processes and dispositions, and their specific geographic and sociopolitical contexts. Collective exercises will revolve around the concept of the “invitation”—what it means to extend an invitation to others, and what these intimations entail and engender.
This seminar is in two parts: a public session featuring participants and invited panelists discussing approaches to international collaborations; and a private session where participants will share proposals with the earlier panel in mind. This sharing may be a way for participants to find collaborators within the group, or be recommended collaborators through the group’s wider network.
After months of online gatherings, participants will finally meet in person for an immersive trip. Expect a rich itinerary comprising follow-up discussions, meetings, pitch sessions, venue visits, performances, and industry contextualisation. The group will also attend the 23rd Festival of Film Animation and Contemporary Art PAF 2024.
Participants from Asia attending this programme will be covered for the following expenses during the in-person gathering in the Czech Republic: