The call for the training program addressed to journalists, critics and writers on performing arts is published.

The deadline to apply is fixed on November 7th, 2010.

SPACE (www.spaceproject.eu) is providing a mobile European training program for critics, journalists, theoreticians, who are writing about performing arts and who want to deepen their knowledge base and analyse and improve their work within an international context.

Space is looking for 20 individuals who will undergo a training program made up of 2 sessions (each lasting 4 days), and taking place in 2 European countries.

The group will have one coordinator following the two sessions and two moderators for each session who will participate in discussions and support the participants in developing their visions.

In addition, participants will be offered the chance to get to know different forms of performing arts through theatre festivals (London), performances (London and Prague), and also through an exhibition of performance design and space (Prague), where scenography will be presented as a discipline existing in between the visual and performing arts.

Some of the works produced by the participants related to the training program could be included in a specific publication, coordinated and published by TEAM Network, at the end of 2011.

Aims of the training:

*To question the idea of mobility by investigating the way we look at foreign artworks, and the way we undertake a discourse about them which may differ from it’s original context.
*to rethink the position of Art Critic today in order to find new ways of thinking and writing about Art for a new public – as a way of »answering through practice«
*to improve knowledge about international work in the performing arts and its questions in terms of aesthetics, new forms and genres
*to question how to write for different critical public
* to discuss which could be new ways of the collaboration between journalist – publicist – editor – artist – audience - reader.
*to investigate which could be new spaces for writing about contemporary performing arts, and to develop the new means already existing.

Content and methodology:

The question of mobility will be addressed through the way Space look at (and write, and talk) about art.

In the classic discipline of rhetoric, parrhesia is a figure of speech described as: to speak candidly or to ask forgiveness for so speaking. The term means literally «to speak everything» and by extension «to speak freely». It implies not only freedom of speech, but the obligation to speak the truth for the common good, even at personal risk. Parrhesia was a fundamental component of the democracy of Classical Athens; elsewhere there were limits to what might be said; freedom to discuss politics, morals, religion, or to criticize people would depend on context: by whom it was made, and when, and how, and where. Michel Foucault's concept of parrhesia describes it as a mode of discourse, in which one speaks openly and truthfully about one's opinions and ideas without the use of rhetoric, manipulation, or generalization.

In the field of Art Critic today, the space for critical discourse is getting smaller, while the format of Art critic is constantly losing its «parrhesial objective», becoming one of the «rhetorical figure» with a clear economical function. Those who write and/or edit are facing a question how to think / write about Art, while we have a «parrhesia ideal”» on the one hand and «rhetorically reality» on the other - as a frame of a certain «discourse strategy» (of a journal, newspaper).

This strategic theme will be declined in the international context, using the opportunity to work in the frame of the London Mime Festival and of the Prague Quadrennial.

It will be debated and practiced about:

* How to extend field of critical discourse in the field of contemporary Art?
*How to follow its function – not just aesthetic implementation?
*How to write for different critical public?
*How to «cross» discourse fields: (structural conditions of production, economical and political aspects, addressing the question of mobility)?
*How to implement »«parrhesia«» in today's critic?
* What could be new ways of the collaboration between journalist – publicist – editor – artist – reader?
*Is there a way to write «collectively»?
*What are the ways to stay mobile?
* What could be new spaces for writing about contemporary performing arts?
*What about the development of new means already existing (blogs, websites, fanzines)? How can we boost these marginal forms to a broader audience, while maintaining the quality and level that distinguishes them?

The training will be based on the programmes offered at the London Mime Festival and the Prague Quadrennial of Performance Design and Space 2011, as a base for discussion and development of a critical discourse. The London session will be moderated by Tiago Bartolomeu Costa (PT) and Yohann Floch (FR). The Prague session will be moderated by Joanna Warsza (PL) and Arnd Wesemann (DE). Antoine Pickels (BE) will coordinate both sessions and stress the links between them.

London session will start with interviews every morning with the artists seen the day before on stage. In the perspective of this «parrhesial» concept, the artists’ words will be the point of departure of a journey to analyse the distance between critics, artists, and readers, discuss (and probably disagree) on the collective writing. Questions related to language-based and no language-based art forms (and the way they travel, or not) will be raised.

Prague session will concentrate on «spoken words and speech acts», and will not consist of writing or speaking about the different live arts phenomenon, but of trying them out through various language and performance formats, such as the Générique, an open-source performance project, which develops depending on the interest and investment of a variety of performers. Developing from examples, brought both by the participants as the moderators, the situation will develop from a general approach of the speech act in the frame of performance, through spoken situations. Questions related to the “need” to tour internationally and its influence on aesthetics, notably in terms of performance space, will be raised.

Tiago Bartolomeu Costa (PT) is the editor of Obscena magazine in Lisbon, and writes and teaches about performing arts and cultural politics. Yohann Floch (FR) is coordinator of the Circostrada Network and in charge of the international relations at HorslesMurs, Paris. Joanna Warsza (PL) is an artist-curator working on the edge of visual and performing arts. Arnd Wesemann (DE) is a writer and editor for Tanz Zeitschrift, Berlin. Antoine Pickels (BE) leads the Belgian magazine Scènes and is the director of La Bellone, House of Performing Arts in Brussels.

The training is conceived and conducted by TEAM network.

TEAM network, Trans-disciplinary European Art Magazines, has been launched as a move towards increased international co-operation and exchange of ideas.
The network aims at enhancing common thinking on priority issues and defining a programme of joint initiatives and actions. It is today made up of 11 European magazines. www.team-network.eu

Who can apply:

Candidates should meet the following criteria:

*At least 3 years of professional experience as writer (critic, journalist, theoretician) for the performing arts, meant as at least three years of publication of works.
*Still active in writing and currently publishing their works.
*Living and/or working within one of the countries in Europe (geographically).
*Fluent in spoken and written English. Applicants should submit their application and supporting documents in English and should expect a telephone conversation in English as part of the final selection process.

When and where

Session 1 – London 26-29 January 2011

in the frame of the London International Mime Festival 2011 www.mimefest.co.uk

Session 2 – Prague, 22–25 June 2011

in the frame of the Prague Quadrennial of Performance Design and Space 2011 www.pq.cz

Language:

The training program will be conducted in English.

Application procedure

In order to apply, candidates must electronically send the following documents in English to writers@spaceproject.eu into November 7th 2010, h.24.00 CET:

*A completed application form (download here).
*A list – including date – of their published articles
* Professional CV
*An article written by the applicant, in its original language, with minimum 300 words translated in English
*An accompanying letter explaining their motivation for joining the training programme, their expectation of the benefit that the training may bring to their professional life over the long term, and the value they can bring into the group.
*Confirmation of their availability for, and commitment to, the dates and duration of the training programme (included in the application form)

In the selection of candidates we will take into account the geographic and cultural diversity of Europe and be aware that the group of journalists corresponds to these circumstances.

Candidates will be informed within one month of the deadline whether they have been selected or not.

Financial conditions:

*Enrolment fee for the whole training programme (2 sessions): 500 €
*The fee is due into January 19th 2011
*International travels of the participants will be arranged and paid by the organisers (local transportation within the participants' country are at her/his charge).
*Accommodation and meals will be provided and paid for by the organisers.
*Few scholarships are available to successful applicants who can provide proof of hardship and who are unable to rise funding elsewhere.




SPACE - Supporting Performing Arts Circulation in Europe

Pilot Project for Artist Mobility
December 2008 – November 2011

Ten national cultural institutions with an international policy and practice created a new platform, dedicated to Support the Performing Arts Circulation in Europe: SPACE.

The members of SPACE share a position in between politics and the artistic field in their own countries, work as centres of information, promote the (performing) arts on a national and international level and are experienced in supporting and running European cultural projects.

They share the belief that one of the cornerstones of a European Cultural Policy is to facilitate the circulation of (performing) arts across Europe, and also realize there are still a lot of imbalances in this transnational arts sphere, between countries, regions, artists, disciplines and cultural operators.

The SPACE project’s objective is to give priority to the mobility of arts productions and to combine cultural mobility with cultural diversity, European citizenship and investing in emerging generations. Still a young initiative, SPACE will enlarge the network while implementing the different activities of the multi-layered project.

Prosegue il programma di formazione professionale nell’ambito di Space, la piattaforma europea che unisce istituzioni culturali di dieci diverse nazioni nell’intento di stimolare la circolazione delle arti performative in Europa.
È online il Bando di partecipazione a WRITERS ON THE MOVE, corso di formazione rivolto a giornalisti, critici e studiosi teatrali, che segue quello dedicato alla figura di Performing Art Manager e quello rivolto a Programmatori e consulenti per la programmazione di spazi e festival.
Si tratta del terzo ed ultimo corso, pensato per i professionisti della scrittura "intorno a" lo spettacolo dal vivo, che vogliano approfondire le conoscenze richieste per operare in un panorama internazionale, per sostenere e rivalutare il mestiere della critica, ancorandolo all’antica virtù della parresia, l’arte di dire la verità.

Saranno selezionati 20 partecipanti per un programma composto di 2 sessioni (da 4 giorni), da svolgersi a Londra e a Praga, rispettivamente a gennaio e giugno 2011.

Il bando, con i requisiti e le condizioni di partecipazione, il calendario e i luoghi delle sessioni, e la domanda di partecipazione possono essere scaricati dai siti www.spaceproject.eu, www.enteteatrale.it e da quelli delle istituzioni partner, ossia l’ONDA (Office National De Diffusion Artistique), il VTI (Vlaams Theater Instituut,), il TIN (Theater Instituut Nederlands), il NTIL (New Theater Institute of Latvia ), il British Council (UK), l’Arts and Theatre Institute (Repubblica Ceca), The Red House (Bulgaria), la Pro Helvetia (Svizzera) ed il Zentrum BRD des Internationalen Theaterinstituts (Germania).

La domanda, da redigere in lingua inglese, completa di tutti i documenti da allegare descritti nel bando, andrà inviata entro le ore 24,00 del 7 novembre 2010 esclusivamente alla seguente e mail: writers@spaceproject.eu



SPACE
Supporting Performing Arts Circulation in Europe

2009-2011
Dieci istituzionali culturali nazionali, accomunate da una missione internazionale nel campo dello spettacolo dal vivo, hanno costituito una piattaforma europea dedicata a stimolare la circolazione delle arti performative in Europa. Questo è SPACE. I membri di SPACE, preso atto delle asimmetrie esistenti tra paesi, territori, artisti e discipline condividono la convinzione che sia necessario costruire una comune ed efficace politica culturale europea, ricercando nuovi strumenti i per favorire la mobilità artistica in Europa.
SPACE intende quindi procedere lungo tre assi di attività che verranno realizzate anche in collaborazione con altre reti e partner:

1. INFORMAZIONE E RICERCA: l’obiettivo è quello acquisire una mappa della mobilità delle opere e degli artisti, armonizzando le metodologie e le procedure di raccolta dati, lo strumento è un prototipo on line denominato Travelogue che utilizza il Web semantico
2. FORMAZIONE E SVILUPPO l’obiettivo è il confronto internazionale di contenuti, metodologie e percorsi didattici; lo strumento è un inedito piano formativo articolato in più corsi per differenti destinatari. Precisamente tre sono i corsi programmati. Uno per manager delle arti performative, uno per programmatori, uno per giornalisti e critici. Un Bando specifico per ciascun corso disciplinerà le modalità di partecipazione.
3. CAPACITY BUILDING l’obiettivo è la creazione di nuove opportunità di intervento culturali a sostegno della mobilità artistica; lo strumento è un percorso di aggiornamento delle competenze istituzionali per gli organismi coinvolti.

Il sito dedicato all'iniziativa: www.spaceproject.eu