Closure of theatres, civil movements and online cultural sources in response to COVID-19 in Hungary
To slow the spread of coronavirus disease government bans all indoor events with more than 100 and all exdoor events with more than 500 participants on the 11th of March. On the following day, Budapest’s mayor orders the closure of all the theatres, cinemas, libraries and museums financed by the capital. Due to the news on the spread of coronavirus and the « stay home » movement, even the smaller studio theatres with a capacity under 100 start to announce their closure for safety reasons.
The Slovak cultural sector is experiencing truly hard times. From the beginning of the pandemic until now, the government failed to take any relevant steps to mitigate the consequences and financial losses brought about by the suspension of cultural activities of all kinds. Tens of thousands of people have been unable to fully practice their professions since March, even though the majority of them have not received any financial assistance from the state.
Cultural centres and their executives courageously held out in the first phase of the pandemic under the prospect of a relaunch of activities at the end of this critical year. However, this idea faded with the onset of the second wave, and, with it, the competent authorities’ ignorance of the cultural sphere, as well as the aggressive arrogance of the general public, which began to express itself on social networks at any mention of financial assistance for artists.
PQ Studio celebrates the real and imaginary spaces in which designers create. Our studios, whether physical or mental spaces, are places where imagined ideas are incubated, assessed, selected or rejected, and then re-imagined; a process repeated and repeated in search of the elusive and alchemical ingredients of theatricality. PQ studio is meant for anyone who seeks new skills, inspiration and knowledge and is willing to learn in our shared space, should it be virtual and or real. PQ Studio celebrates the real and imaginary spaces in which designers create. Our studios, whether physical or mental spaces, are places where imagined ideas are incubated, assessed, selected or rejected, and then re-imagined; a process repeated and repeated in search of the elusive and alchemical ingredients of theatricality. PQ studio is meant for anyone who seeks new skills, inspiration and knowledge and is willing to learn in our shared space, should it be virtual and or real.
Call to Performance Design Educators and Students
PQ STUDIO: COMMON DESIGN PROJECT SPECIAL EDITION
Text: The White Plague (Czech: Bílá nemoc)
Author: renowned Czech writer, playwright, critic and originator of the word Robot, Karel Čapek
Open Call text: to download HERE
Deadline for Institutions to Register Intent: 15 June or 1 October (see two timeline options in the Call)
A trial by fire for the Slovak National Theatre in its jubilee season
Virtual Centenary of the SND
On 1 March 2020, the Slovak National Theatre (SND) celebrated its 100th anniversary with a gala program. Shortly thereafter, activities planned for the jubilee season to commemorate the centenary were drastically affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, with its associated quarantine and the cancellation of social and cultural events of all kinds.
The SND closed its doors on 9 March 2020, with ticket sales suspended until the end of the season. Such an extraordinary situation has demanded an extraordinary solution. Each of the SND’s companies has prepared a rich online programme with offerings for all age categories, with the online project SND DOMA (SND AT HOME) launched on the website 100.snd.sk. “Art and culture have always been a way to access different, more beautiful ways of thinking. I believe we’ve done a good job of thinking it through and are bringing our patrons a bit of distraction in this difficult situation,” explained Henrieta Borowiecka, director of the SND’s Marketing Centre, speaking about the project’s goal in the time of quarantine.
Book your front row seat for the Spring Forward 2020 online festival. The Aerowaves and Springback Magazine teams along with our friends at the Croatian Cultural Centre will bring the international dance festival to your home on 24-26 April.
The virtual edition will be hosted through Zoom, where artists, programmers, producers, dance journalists and the audience will gather during the days the festival was planned to take place. In addition to the full-length performances, our host Edvin Liverić will guide us through Rijeka and Opatija so we can still visit the festival’s venues, albeit virtually. The online festival will also hold live Springback Q&A with the artists in which everyone attending can participate, Giuliana Majo will offer us her tips on how to be the best spectator from home, and we will close the festival with a party dancing with Dubioza Kolektiv.
The Czech Republic also has its representatives here. Choreographer and performer Markéta Stránská and performer Viktor Černický will perform here.
THE SHOW MUST GO ON – LINE MEET your friends at Europe’s biggest dance watch party – live! DISCOVER historic Rijeka and glamorous Opatija guided from venue to venue by your amiable host Edvin WATCH all full-length performances as originally planned – plus a bonus extra! ZOOM in and join the discussions live with the artists and Springback writers after every performance SEE YOU at Spring Forward 24-26 April morning, noon and night! BE THERE
CLICK HERE TO REGISTER NOW!
Dancers and Austerity of Movement
Czech performers have been stuck at home since 12 March 2020, which is particularly catastrophic for dancers and artists in the movement-based arts of physical theatre, contemporary circus and mime. Not only must their bodies, accustomed to daily physical (and emotional) performance and training, contend with new routines and excess energy; they also have to adapt psychologically and economically. The majority of dancers, across all genres and styles, train at home on just a few square metres. Many post their daily training on social media as a motivation for others, or as targeted lessons for their students. The pedagogical activities of dancers have literally flooded social media and other online platforms. The initial enthusiasm and solidarity expressed by sharing free lessons have gradually given rise to a new professional reality: the virtual. The internet cannot replace live teacher-student contact, but online lessons help to maintain both community ties and the participants’ conditioning and at least somewhat offset the economic difficulties affecting the entire arts sector.
SARS-CoV-2 and Polish Performing Arts
The Ministry of Culture and National Heritage: “Anti-crisis” shield for workers and cultural institutions
State support for creators, artists, and workers within the cultural sector, cultural companies and NGOs whose activities cannot continue during the period of the pandemic, an increase in funding of social aid for artists and additional support for the development of new forms of online access to cultural content and stimulation once activities resume – these are some features of the ‘anti-crisis shield’ for virus-hit economy presented on 18.03.2020 by President Andrzej Duda and Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki.