The ETC Development grants support projects between three ETC Member Theatres from three different countries, to co-create new narratives and help commission new international theatre works.
2023/24
- Balkan Theatre Exchange Network
This project aims to make the first steps at strengthening the collaboration in the Balkans by organising a much-needed working meeting of representatives of public theatres from the 12 Balkan states.
The meeting aims to discuss the obstacles and challenges to possible cooperation between theatres from the Balkans, as well as possible joint solutions to overcome them. The discussion topics will be artistic policy; administrative and logistical challenges; theatre infrastructure; cultural tensions and language barriers.
Particular attention will be paid to the possibility of establishing an active exchange network, a legal entity, an Association of Balkan Theatres, and the possibility of launching a Balkan Showcase, a theatre biennial on a rotational basis, presenting an artistic selection from the region and thus promoting its theatre production and achievements.
The meeting takes place in Sofia, from 27 February to 02 March 2024.
Grants awarded to National Theatre Ivan Vazov, National Theatre of Greece, National Theatre of Kosovo
- MITI MITI (working title)
MITI MITI is a mesmerising walk through Saviour Pirotta's worlds in his bestselling book, The Orchard Book of First Greek Myths. Teatru Malta with its co-producers will spectacularly transform its myths into a never-before-experienced interactive storytelling theatre piece called, MITI MITI.
Intended for children aged 8 to 12, MITI MITI invites its public to actively become the architects of their own mythical adventure, using characters and personalities born in the cradle of democracy. The children will vote for the story they wish to see unfold, enabling a dynamic, audience-driven narrative.
We want to imagine puppets, paper sculptures and costumes (by James Dimech), multidisciplinary bodies performing in multilingual scripts, adding layers of creativity and cultural inclusivity, dancing to the choreography of the National Theatre Greece.
Grants awarded to Teatru Malta, Fondazione Teatro Due , National Theatre of Greece
- The Elephant Man (working title)
The Elephant Man is a theatrical co-production which seeks to breathe new life into Bernard Pomerance's acclaimed play, The Elephant Man. Teatru Malta and its co-producers' endeavour transcends conventional boundaries, intertwining historical narrative with speculative futurism, using the enigmatic life of John Merrick as a metaphorical lens to explore the complexities of disability, artificial intelligence and robotics.
The project will see the participation of Marco Donnarumma as John Merrick. He is a hard-of-hearing multidisciplinary artist. He manipulates bodies, creates choreographies, engineers machines and composes sounds, thus combining disciplines, media and technology into an uncompromising aesthetic. His body becomes a morphing language to speak critically of ritual, power and technology.
Grants awarded to Teatru Malta, Slovensko Narodno Gledalisce Nova Gorica, National Theatre of Kosovo
The ETC Development grants support projects between three ETC Member Theatres from three different countries, to co-create new narratives and help commission new international theatre works.
- The Best European Show
The international production of 'The Best European Show', is directed by Haris Pašović. Artists from eight countries will create a show that is a unique example of cooperation between theatrical partners from all over Europe. Teatru Malta, Slovenian National Theatre Nova Gorica, Fondazione Teatro Due Parma, National Theatre of Kosovo and JK Opole Theatre join forces!
Haris Pašović diagnoses the condition of European theatre and looks at its relationship to democracy. As a portrait of a closed community, 'The Best European Show' highlights the most important challenges facing contemporary theatre, showing systemic pathologies and proposing a dialogue about contemporary Europe and the relationship between art and power.
The show's cast includes actors and actresses from Italy, Kosovo, Malta, Slovenia, Germany, France and Poland. The Opole premiere of 'The Best European Show' will kick off the show's European tour.
Grants awarded to SNG Nova Gorica, Teatru Malta, JK Opole Theatre
- Exile. Look in. Look out.
Dakh Theatre – Center of Contemporary Art, Volkstheater Wien and Deutsches Theater Berlin will present a scenic reading of two new texts from the Ukrainian authors Lyuba Yakimchuk and Pavlo Arie, who live in exile, and from the material produced by the CCA Dakh team now based in various parts of Ukraine and Europe.
Grants awarded to Volkstheater Wien, Deutsches Theater Berlin, DAKH Theatre
- Innovative Ways of Inclusive Talent Development
A project to share knowledge and exchange best practices of talent development of the theatre-makers of the future, with a particular view to working inclusively and supporting makers from diverse and historically under -represented backgrounds.
The ETC Development Grant will be used to visit each other with a small delegation of each theatre, to get to know each other's programs better and exchange best practices. In addition, to research other theatres in Europe with inspiring examples.
Grants awarded to De Toneelmakerij, Young Vic, Det Norske Teatret
- Drama of Smaller European Languages
This initiative aims to address the challenges faced by the performing arts field, particularly in dramatic and spoken word arts, due to the size of the languages they are created in.
The Drama of Smaller European Languages proposes collaboration among speakers of smaller European languages through various modes such as translation rings, stagings of works, a festival, and author exchanges.
The project aims to de-centralise and balance the power of world languages, promote inclusivity, and integrate technological tools to facilitate exchanges. The programme has received interest from multiple countries and has developed a sub-network within the ETC framework to pursue its goals.
Grants awarded to Prešernovo Gledališče Kranj, Teatru Malta, Slovak National Drama Theatre
- Kick-Off Fast Forward Festival Forum
Three years after the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Fast Forward Festival Forum offers students of five European theatre academies in a KickOff-edition an eye-level encounter with theatre professionals. Three ETC theatres each invite students either of their own or of an academy they’re collaborating with to attend the European festival for young directors Fast Forward in Dresden from 02-05 November 2023. Along with a theatre director, a producer and an instructor, they will watch the eight festival productions, meet the artistic teams and discuss their prospect for contemporary theatre. On the last day, a public matinee that will be streamed online will document the forum’s discussion, which at once may shed light on the current concepts of performing and exploring theatre in Europe of today.
Grant awarded to Staatsschauspiel Dresden, Théâtre National de Bretagne, National Theatre of Greece
- UNLEARNING FOR FUTURE
Forty young people from four different European theatres embark on a journey. Over a four-year period, they will explore four different themes: GROWTH, TIME, PROPERTY and AUTONOMY. Each year, the group will do a workshop in a thematically appropriate place and work together on a concept to clarify what this means to them: what is growth? And what would have to happen for it to be unlearned? And what would the world look like without it? A journey of unlearning for a sustainable society. Accompanied by theatre educators and experts, people between the ages of 16 and 22 are challenged to help shape the future in which they will live. This exploration does not remain theoretical: in the 2027/2028 season, the international group will present their results in a performative intervention at the Deutsches Theater Berlin.
Grant awarded to Deutsches Theater Berlin, Teatro Nacional D.Maria II, Teatrul Național “Lucian Blaga” din Cluj-Napoca
