European Theatre Convention - ETC-CTE · Alain Badiou in his “Rhapsody for the Theatre”. Dubravka Vrgoč FOREWORD 4 President of the European Theatre Convention

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THEATRE BEYOND BORDERS: Identities & Belonging

European Theatre Convention

International Theatre Conference General AssemblyThéâtre de la Manufacture, CDN Nancy-LorraineNANCY 21 - 24 APRIL 2016

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CONTENT

Foreword

About ETC

About Théâtre de la Manufacture

Some thoughts by Fouad Laroui

Agenda

Performances

To see in Nancy

Addresses

Contact

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We live in dramatic and unstable times in which everyday events change not only our perspective, but also our destiny. We bear witness to historical changes, which are no longer measured in decades or years, but in days and hours. The values that until recently defined us have suddenly become worn-out and irrelevant. We are faced with economic crises, waves of migrants, terrorist attacks and many other risks, until recently completely unknown. And while we constantly lose ourselves in this uncertainty, unable to find any orientation, we also get further away from the possibility of finding a clear answer to the question: where is our true place today and to whom do we belong?Isn’t the theatre the best place to look for the answers, with its thousands of years of experience of asking important questions of contemporary society? Or has the theatre also lost itself in this mad reality, where the question of diversity is less and less tied to the question of identity? Has it become but an unimportant stopping point, a place to have fun or forget?We will not accept this marginalised position of the theatre and will try to keep the question of identity closely tied to the theatre. We believe the theatre is a place which belongs to us, and we to it, a place in which we directly enter into dialogue with the times in which we live and a place in which haunting topics of our everyday life are reflected. “The theatre is the second path to the truth: today more than ever it is our duty to question it in order to make peace with the truth”, exhorts Alain Badiou in his “Rhapsody for the Theatre”.

Dubravka Vrgoč

FOREWORD

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President of the European Theatre Convention General Manager & Artistic Director Croatian National Theatre Zagreb

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In Laicism We TrustBorders are always in our heads.70 years after the Second World War, it is still difficult to get rid of the safety nets which prevent us from opening our minds to others. This generous Europe of 28 members is slowly shutting down, looking inwards at its beliefs and its superstitions, as markers of identity. It is high time to make up our minds because these mixed feelings give rise to a threatening confusion.While we take pride in climate change and sustainability negotiations, we still assess our society in terms of economic growth and increasing consumption. In the name of Human Rights, we are waging war against dictators but, paradoxically, chaos, sharia and looting emerge. The Western world wins the military war, but seems to be losing the moral one.Therefore we must be ethically blameless and politically effective. We have to prepare ourselves for an intellectual struggle in order to get our audience thinking about those critical issues. The very essence of theatre is to turn secular speech into a sacred one. Today it is our duty to open our shielded theatre to avoid the rise of violent extremism. We must enlighten consciences to build an enduring home. We need to avoid stigmatizing or discriminating people based on nationalities, origins or orientation.Beyond borders there are human beings. Humanity should be stronger than the concept of nation.We need to get organized to build a society based on shared values. Theatre makes us aware of such complexity. It is the place to tell stories, which transcend boundaries.Collectively, our individual stories create the big picture.

Michel DidymBoard member of the European Theatre Convention

Director of Théâtre de la Manufacture, CDN Nancy-Lorraine

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ABOUT ETC

The European Theatre Convention (ETC) is a network for public theatres.It was founded in 1988 with the aims to promote exchange and discussion between artistic, technical and administrative personnel involved in theatres and theatre-making, to provide support to encourage the exchange of performances among different countries and to bridge thelanguage gap that exists in the spoken theatre. Today, the ETC has grownto become Europe’s largest-scale network of its kind, representing some11.000 employees in over 30 theatres in more than 20 countries aroundEurope, thousands of artists and 16.000 performances and public eventsper year.As a European theatre collaboration network, the ETC introduces outstanding new ideas and examples of best practices in use at theatresaround Europe and supports the development of international collaboration and artistic mobility projects focusing on new theatrical creation and collaboration forms. It also serves as a professional platformfor theatre makers, organizes meetings, invests in education and trainingopportunities and initiates theatre research and publications. In addition, ETC is also active as an influential advocacy network representing the European public theatre sector on the political decision-making level, working to build long-term, structured relationships with European political institutions for the important purpose of strengthening the position of the European public theatres as part of the vital culture andcreative sector.The ETC network engages in programs that encourage European theatre collaboration from a variety of perspectives: mobility program support exchanges of theatre makers, performances and projects within the network; festivals showcase new European theatre trends and are important platforms for young artists; the ‘Young Europe’ program created new plays for young people in schools and theatres showing a genuine cross-border cooperation; a recently conducted Audience Development Study provides pioneering knowledge about audiences for European theatres. In the recent artistic flagship project ‘The Art of Ageing’, ETC theatres share on Europe’s stages the burning topic of demographic challenges our society is confronted with.

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ABOUT THÉÂTRE DE LA MANUFACTURE

Théâtre de la Manufacture is one of the 35 French national drama centres (CDN). In France, CDN is a title awarded to a theatrical institution, which is closely related to the notion of public theatre. The Director of a CDN is nominated by the Minister of Culture and Communication.Michel Didym, French actor and stage director, has been directing the Théâtre de la Manufacture since 2010. He has introduced new events such as the RING international theatre festival, which takes place in April, and the Neue Stücke festival focusing on German dramaturgy, which takes place in November.The productions of the Théâtre de la Manufacture focus on contemporary texts, as well as repertoire plays. Its creations are presented in Nancy, as well as on regional, national and international tours. The Théâtre de la Manufacture also collaborates with other theatres to co-produce performances.

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Dutch-French-Moroccan economist and writer and this year’s keynote speaker at the ETC International Theatre Conference.

The tragic events of the last months (Paris, Brussels…) can be interpreted as a shock between two narratives: a European one and an Arab one. It is therefore vital to try and write a ‘meta-story’ that could bridge the gaps between the two narratives. Writers could play an important role in this respect. However there is a specific, technical problem which makes it almost impossible for writers to do it. On the other hand, theatre is not inhibited by that problem; it could therefore contribute to writing the meta-story and representing both narratives. In so doing, it could help solve the many misunderstandings that make it difficult for many second-generation Europeans to feel at home in Europe, torn as they are between their many identities and distorted sense of belonging.

SOME THOUGHTS BY FOUAD LAROUI

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AGENDATHEATRE BEYOND BORDERS:Identities & BelongingTHURSDAY, APRIL 21

15h - 17h30 Board meeting Théâtre de la Manufacture

18h Opening Cocktail International Theatre Conference & RING Festival

Michel Didym, Artistic Director of Théâtre de la Manufacture, CDN Nancy-Lorraine Dubravka Vrgoč, ETC President Installations by Johnny Lebigot Théâtre de la Manufacture, Bar Theatre Performances

19h30 The Events French premiere written by David Greig, directed by Ramin Gray, in French, surtitled in English Théâtre de la Manufacture, Grande Salle

21h30 Tank Man by Compagnie Osmosis / Ali Salmi visual dance performance “surprise” venue, open air Festival get together with DJ Battle Théâtre de la Manufacture, Bar

FRIDAY, APRIL 22

10h – 10h15 Welcome Michel Didym, Artistic Director of Théâtre de la Manufacture, CDN Nancy-Lorraine Dubravka Vrgoč, ETC President Théâtre de la Manufacture, Salle de Répétitions

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10h15 – 11h Keynote speech Fouad Laroui, economist and writer Followed by discussion

11h – 11h15 Coffee break

11h15 – 12h15 Panel talk Theatre Beyond Borders: Identities & belonging Clemens Bechtel, stage director Fouad Laroui, economist and writer Rachid Benzine, political scientist and Islamologist

12h30 – 14h Networking lunch reception Town hall in the presence of Laurent Hénart, Mayor of Nancy, Minister a.D.

14h – 14h45 Guided Visit of Museum of Fine Arts by Charles Villeneuve de Janti, director and heritage curator

15h – 15h45 Presentation of the ETC network strategy for European drama theatres 2017-2020 Théâtre de la Manufacture, Salle de Répétitions

15h45 – 16h45 Discover and meet international theatre artists Vaiva Grainytė & Ana Ablamonova, Lithuanian performing arts collective and co-authors of the Fast Forward Festival 2015 winner performance Have a Good Day! Ramin Gray (The Events) & Tatiana Frolova (Le Songe de Sonia), RING Festival artists

16h45 – 17h Coffee break

17h – 17h30 Artistic collaboration projects – calls for participation

17h30 – 18h ETC General Assembly for ETC members only Activity report Vote Accounts 2015 Members & network affairs: vote new members

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18h End of conference day 1

Theatre performances19h Le Songe de Sonia

after The Dream of a Ridiculous Man by Fyodor Dostoyevsky, created and directed by Tatiana Frolova, in Russian, surtitled in French and English Théâtre de la Manufacture, La Fabrique

21h The Events French premiere written by David Greig, directed by Ramin Gray in French, surtitled in English Théâtre de la Manufacture, Grande Salle Festival get together with music band Factor Cheval & DJ Théâtre de la Manufacture, Bar

SATURDAY, APRIL 23

10h – 10h15 Introduction & presentation workshops Théâtre de la Manufacture, Salle de Répétitions

10h15 – 13h Project development workshop ‘The European house’ in the presence of Clemens Bechtel, stage director

10h15 – 13h Project workshop for the artistic teams of ‘ETC European Theatre Lab: Drama goes digital’ in the presence of Bruno Cohen, artist and founder of Urban User Lab

13h – 14h30 Networking lunch Theatre Festival Restaurant

14h30 – 16h30 Parallel artistic workshop sessions 1) Brainstorming session: ETC strategy 2017-2020, working groups “What network do we want?” 2) Individual networking time

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16h30 – 17h Coffee break

17h – 18h Report from the sessions and conclusion

18h End of conference day 2

18h – 19h Board meeting Théâtre de la Manufacture

Theatre performances18h Le Songe de Sonia,

after The Dream of a Ridiculous Man by Fyodor Dostoyevsky, created and directed by Tatiana Frolova, in Russian, surtitled in French and English Théâtre de la Manufacture, La Fabrique

20h Examen created and directed by Michel Didym, in French, surtitled in English Ensemble Scolaire Notre-Dame Saint-Sigisbert, Nancy

20h The Events French premiere written by David Greig, directed by Ramin Gray in French, surtitled in English Théâtre de la Manufacture, Grande Salle

Festival get together with music band Dirty Deep & DJ, Théâtre de la Manufacture, Bar

SUNDAY, APRIL 24 RING Festival & Departures

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PERFORMANCES

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APRIL 21 19:30| MANUFACTURE - Grande Salle APRIL 22 21:00| MANUFACTURE - Grande Salle APRIL 23 20:00| MANUFACTURE - Grande Salle

LES ÉVÉNEMENTS (THE EVENTS)by David Greig translation Dominique Hollierdirected by Ramin Gray with ACTORS TOURING COMPANY

The Events tells the story of Claire – an honest, nice, generous, leftist pastor, who conducts a choir in a community. Claire has experienced a terrible moment: a young man she vaguely knows shoots those “who are not from here” to assert himself within the community.The play is not a documentary reproduction of such terrifying events, rather following Claire’s character throughout the attempt to understand how someone could commit such a dreadful act and how it all ends up driving this same person into self-destruction. The play focuses on the communities’ reaction facing an act of aggression and on the difficulties of living on afterwards.David Greig’s daring play explores our destructive desire to fathom the unfathomable and asks how far forgiveness can stretch in the face of brutality.

Performance time 1 hour 30 minutes, in French surtitled in English

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TANK MANdirected by Ali Salmi with Osmosis Company

Tank man – the protester from Tian’anmen – represented for the TimeMagazine “the power of the anonymous: the unknown soldier arising from a new republic of images”. Within his new project, Ali Salmi questions the associations that are linked with this icon: the courage and the force of non-violence facing armed repression as the heart of the “Revolt”!A dancer performs in the middle of a video installation that is constructed as a barricade composed of huge screens. The performance mingles dance with digital 3D images in a format that ranges between documentary, fiction and live performance. The dancer’s calm and stoic body language connects with the chaos of the 20th and 21st century revolutions that are shown on the screens, questioning the audience on a phenomenon that seems to never stop reproducing itself.Osmosis Cie is a choreographic company and artistic ensemble based in Forbach in Lorraine, led by the choreographer and dancer Ali Salmi. For 15 years it has been creating monumental shapes in public area, distinguishing itself in Street Arts through its characteristic qualities of “sensitivity”, “reality” and “body”. Tank Man is the last production by Ali Salmi in Europe before the artist leaves for Korea to “get infected by whatever surrounds him.”

APRIL 21 21:00| OPEN AIR

Performance time 1 hour, visual dance performance

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LE SONGE DE SONIA (SONIA’S DREAM)directed by Tatiana Frolova

with KnAM Theatre, Komsomolsk-on-Amur (RUSSIA)

Sonia’s dream is based on Dostoievski’s novel The dream of a ridiculous man, published four years after the author’s death. The protagonist has lost his meaning of life; reality seems cruel to him, the people completely unconcerned by everything that surrounds them. This project explores the subject of suicide and questions the fact that too many people, in these days, lose hope and prefer death over live. Even though, according to official statistics, more than a million people commit suicide each year and the real figure is considered even four times higher, in plenty of countries, the statistics are kept secret or are subjects of a particular discretion. The ruling classes do not have an interest in evoking this subject and the society is not aware of the problems’ gravity. But if so many people think that their existence does not have a meaning, the civilisation finds itself in a severe deadlock.

APRIL 22 19:00| MANUFACTURE - La Fabrique APRIL 23 18:00| MANUFACTURE - La Fabrique

Performance time 1 hour 30 minutes, in Russian surtitled in French & English

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EXAMEN (THE EXAM)conception and direction by Michel Didym

texts by Nathalie Fillion, Nino Haratischwili, Jean-Philippe Jaworski,

David Lescot, Philipp Lohle, Markus Orths, Frederic Sonntag,

Nis-Momme Stockmann, Frederic Vossier

Among the most fearful trials we have to experience in life, an oral exam in front of an unknown jury is certainly the peak.We are attuned to face those feared moments – job interviews without preparation included – where not only our competences and our projects are gauged and judged but also our voice, our size, our haircut, our lips, our eyes, our general appearance and this very subjective concept that we call “the charisma”.The exam offers the public to slip into the skin of an examiner and thus to become a jury member. With this performance Michel Didym questions the position of the spectator who is asked to be ‘active’. At the end of the exams and after consultation with each jury member, the president announces his verdict. The performance establishes an exchange between the different juries, the actors, the authors and the director.

APRIL 23 20:00| ENSEMBLE SCOLAIRE SAINT SIGISBERT

Performance time 1 hour 30 minutes, in French surtitled in English

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TO SEE IN NANCYNancy welcomes you with open arms. From Ville Vieille (the Old Town) to Place Stanislas, from its museums and performance venues to its bars and quaint restaurants, Lorraine’s Capital of the Dukes lovingly cultivates its unique lifestyle. The Old Town, combining Medieval and Renaissance architecture, takes you back in time. Composed of a web of alleys, small squares, narrow streets lined with tall houses displaying carved gables and mullioned windows, the Old Town surrounds the Ducal Palace, a remarkable Renaissance building constructed by René II. There are three UNESCO sites (Place Stanislas, de la Carrière and d’Alliance), six museums and several monuments from the Middle Ages right up to the 21st century, including many fine examples of Art Nouveau, Art Deco and Street Art.Institutions with artistic and cultural national reputation are the National Opera, the National Ballet, the National Theatre and the orchestra. Nancy has 300 hectares of green space divided into 40 parks. Each point of the urban agglomeration is less than a 10 minute walk from one of those parks. Each of the city’s three remarkable gardens has a history and a unique appearance. An example is the Pépinière Park, which was founded in the 18th century, and redesigned in the 19th century. The park is a place for joggers and families throughout the year, and it is particularly appreciated on beautiful days for short breaks in the grass. Typical local gastronomy includes bergamots treats, macaroons, quiches, paté Lorrain, Mirabelle plums, local wine.

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ADDRESSES

THEATRE DE LA MANUFACTURE10 rue Baron Louis, 54014 Nancy+33 (0)3 83 37 12 99www.theatre-manufacture.fr

HOTEL CAMPANILE12 Rue de Serre, 54000 Nancy+33 (0)3 57 29 10 07www.campanile.com/fr/hotels/campanile-nancy-centre-gare

HOTEL IBIS STYLES3 Rue de l’Armée Patton, 54000 Nancy+33 (0)3 83 40 31 24www.ibis.com/fr/hotel-6852-ibis-styles-nancy-centre-gare/index.shtml

PHARMACIES PHARMACIE SAINT LEON26 Rue Raymond Poincaré, 54000 Nancy+33 (0)3 83 40 07 67

TAXISLes taxis de Nancy +33 (0)3 03 83 37 65 37

EMERGENCYPOLICE: 17EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES: 112

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CONTACT

Heidi WileyETC General Secretary

Paula Oevermann ETC Project Coordinator +49 (0)176 789 00 [email protected]

Monica Zarna ETC Network Coordinator+49 (0)152 248 49 059 [email protected]

Teresa PfaudETC Project Assistant+49 (0)176 325 86 [email protected]

Sarah McKeeThéâtre de la Manufacture Administrator+33 (0)3 83 37 78 [email protected]

Elodie CrouvizierThéâtre de la Manufacture Project Assistant+33 (0)3 83 37 78 [email protected]

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EUROPEAN THEATRE MATTERS!GET CONNECTED WITH THE ETC!EUROPEAN THEATRE CONVENTIONc/o Deutsches TheaterSchumannstr. 13A10117 BerlinGermanyTel. +49 (0)30 284 41 460Fax +49 (0)30 284 41 [email protected]

WWW.ETC-CTE.ORG

We look forward to seeing you at the next ETC International Theatre Conference & General Assembly

6 - 9 OCTOBER 2016

INTERNATIONAL THEATRE FESTIVAL MESS IN SARAJEVO, BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA