Our Stage

Our Stage introduces the idea of Bürgerbühne (literally “citizens’ stage”) – which is run the same way as a professional in-house production company but involves nonprofessional actors – as a new form of creative community outreach via artistic collaboration and as a new artistic business model. Parallel to Germany, where numerous Bürgerbühnen and similar models have been founded in recent years, the development of participatory theatre in other parts of Europe has also progressed.

In February 2018, nine ETC Member Theatres decided to explore the Bürgerbühne concept during a three-day workshop at Staatsschauspiel Dresden. Some of the ETC Members, like Staatstheater Graz, even developed a whole new Bürgerbühne stage.

The project culminated with the Our Stage – 4th European Bürgerbühne Festival at Staatsschauspiel Dresden, which aimed at promoting a pan-European view of participatory theatre projects, strengthening these developments through an intensive exchange of form, content and experiences, and creating a European network for participatory theatre.