Projects

The aim of the project is to ensure the visibility of Roma theatres in the V4 region. Throughout the project, we will support the mobility of Roma theatre creators in the region, present their plays in partner countries, and help preserve their artistic work by recording the performances and including them in a Roma theatre archive created by the project leader. This will also provide access for academics to the often overlooked values of Roma theatre and literature.

The project is implemented with the support of the Visegrad Fund.

In many European countries, there are professional Roma theatres and theatre professionals, yet they are extremely isolated and virtually invisible to the mainstream. Roma theatre has a rich history dating back to the 19th century, but its cultural value often remains unknown. Roma theatre creators and collectives have little to no presence in international networks, lack significant connections with the mainstream theatre sector, and are unfamiliar with innovative business models and techniques that could make their professional work more sustainable and help them reach wider audiences.

Within the framework of the project, special emphasis is placed on strengthening cooperation among European Roma creators, encouraging the development of new theatrical works, and ensuring the visibility of Roma theatre—especially as the mainstream theatre profession is increasingly interested in Roma self-representation.

Aims:

• Strengthening the network of Roma theatre creators at the European level, including developing their distribution capacities.
• Ensuring the mobility and visibility of Roma theatre creators and their work in various European countries.
  Developing audiences regarding the values of Roma theatre and the social situation of Roma communities, and supporting interactive participation in theatrical discourse.
• Developing audiences regarding the values of Roma theatre and the social situation of Roma communities, and supporting interactive participation in theatrical discourse.
• Recording the works and using digital materials for marketing, educational, and archival purposes.
• Training university lecturers, artists, and trainers about the value of Roma drama and theatre, including its social and aesthetic aspects, to support their professional work.
• Building a new generation of artistic directors, producers, and managers with fundamental knowledge of Roma art and history, so they can represent minority interests in the cultural scene.
• Defining the professional foundations of European Roma Theatre.
  
  
  

The program is implemented with the support of the European Union’s Creative Europe.

During the project, we further developed the Roma Heroes educational material and methodology originally created by Independent Theatre in 2017, with the support of three partners, resulting in an educational framework that can also be used internationally. All three of our partners participated as performers in the 2017 or 2018 Roma Heroes International Storytelling Festival, so the methodology is fundamentally based on their own theatre pieces as well.
Moreover, each partner works with young people of different age groups and abilities, making the methodology a flexible framework that can be easily adapted for groups with diverse or special needs. As part of the project, each partner trained four contemporary trainers, who will be able to use the methodology in the future to lead workshops for Roma and non-Roma youth in both school and informal settings.

The completed study is available by clicking here: Foundation_bricks_HU

The project is supported by European Union Erasmus+.

In February 2020, Independent Theatre Hungary is organizing a two-day training aimed at emphasizing the importance of storytelling in formal and non-formal education, with particular focus on understanding vulnerable groups, such as Roma people.

During the training, we will introduce 12 youth workers and 4 university lecturers to the applicability of the storytelling genre, as numerous studies have already shown that conveying knowledge through personal stories is a much more effective method in both formal and non-formal education than simply presenting social and sociological facts and data.

At our invitation, four Roma and non-Roma storytellers will come to conduct training sessions. They will speak about the technical and professional aspects of their work, as well as the importance of self-advocacy.

The program is supported by the Federation for European Storytelling (FEST).