There’s much more to digital culture than the mere recording of theatre productions. Globalisation and the internet have already transformed our perception of “being together.” In the digital boom, people share not only the physical spaces in which they find themselves, but the entire online space. How do European theatre artists and theorists work with digitality? Is it enough for twenty-first-century theatre to think globally and act locally? Join us for a discussion of all things digital, from everyday tools like Zoom through the use of VR and technology in contemporary productions to theatre as a site of informed resistance to corporate techno-optimism.
The Show Must Go ON/OFF-Line is the title of a cycle of international on-line discussions with guests from the field of performing arts in the Czech Republic and abroad. Individual episodes are united by the common theme of sustainability and the performing arts, which moderators Martina Pecková Černá, Ondřej Škrabal, Alice Koubová, Katarína Figula, Jiří Šimek and their guests, drawn from the ranks of theatre and dance artists, curators, cultural managers and theorists, will examine from many points of view. Among these are the field’s sensitivity and responsiveness to the state of the environment and discussions around our potential to ensure that the quality of life we enjoy today is preserved for future generations. While it might appear that the critical need for social change discussed in the fields of ecology, economics, politics and culture has been overshadowed in recent months by the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, the performing arts sector has faced increasing concerns about the sustainability of the field itself, linked to the chaos around different rules for social distancing, the deteriorating economic situation and the unpredictable behaviour of audiences. The rapid adaptation of theatre and dance works for the virtual environment has emerged as a defensive reaction. Does this hybrid existence in real and virtual space amount to a blind alley for a field that is based on contact with the audience, or does it open up new worlds and new possibilities? Will spectators stay at home forever? How are artists, cultural event organisers, public support providers and educational arts institutions responding to this crisis? What helps them to orientate themselves, what do they believe in and where are they headed? How are they communicating? In dialogue with our guests, we will try to map the performing arts’ emerging strategies and first responses to this global paradigm shift.
This online webinar series is organised by ATI’s International Cooperation Department as part of its Promotion of Czech Performing Arts Abroad program and in cooperation with the European projects Create to Connect -> Create to Impact and PACE.V4. In its content, the series is linked to the theme of this year’s Theatre Night in the Czech Republic: sustainABILITY. The webinars will be held on the Zoom platform and take place in English only. Spectators will have the opportunity to ask guests questions during the meetings and the recordings will be made available on ATI’s YouTube channel.
Webinars will take place on the ZOOM platform; it is not necessary to download the application in advance.
– Register for the webinar HERE
– After filling out the registration form, you will receive an email with a link to access the webinar.
– If possible, please register 15 minutes before the start of the event to allow time to complete the registration process.
– Webinars will be held in English.
Contact: Barbora Comer (barbora.comer@idu.cz)
Speakers’ profiles:
Marcus Lobbs has served, since 2019, as Artistic Director of the Academy for_Theatre_and_Digitality in Dortmund. Since Summer 2020, he has also served as its designated Director. He has worked as a director and designer in dramatic and musical theatre in the major German theatres since 1995. His artistic signature is characterised by new, collective forms of working with ensembles and close contacts with contemporary authors. In addition to numerous invitations and awards, his approach also finds its way into the training of young talent: he has recently been invited as a guest lecturer and speaker at the Academy of Performing Arts in Ludwigsburg, the Salzburg Mozarteum, the University of Rostock, the University of Applied Sciences in Mainz, the University of Art in Graz and the Robert Schumann Music Academy in Düsseldorf.
Matěj Nytra is a theatre dramaturg at HaDivadlo Brno, an author and an audiovisual and film critic. In his doctoral research and pedagogical practice at the Theatre Faculty – Janáček Academy of Performing Arts, he focuses on contemporary intermedia theatre, live cinema and set design.
Krzystof Garbaczewski is a director, set designer and the first Polish theatre director working in Virtual Reality technology. His characteristic collage style uses video projection and direct broadcasting to refer to our contemporary cyber sensitivity. He is the founder of the Dream Adoption Society collective, which focuses on developing the language of digital arts, virtual and augmented reality, in the space of theatre and performance art. His practice combines new technologies with performance art and installations. Dream Adoption Society uses solutions such as: scanning and implementation of actors into a virtual 3D live environment, applications enabling multiple viewers to experience virtual reality at the same time, creation of digital avatars and VR environments (Virtual Reality) combined with real scenery and props or use of holographic characters generated in real time in augmented reality.
Ondřej Škrabal is a writer and theatre director. He contributes to ČRo Vltava and publishes in A2, Salon Práva and others. He is a recipient of the Max Brod Prize and the former editor in chief of the magazine Psí víno. In 2016, he found theatrical Studio Rote in Prague; in 2018, he won the Nová Dráma award for the text Zjevení pudla. In the same year, his first book Platná pravidla pro herce was published. He lives in Berlin.
