Common Theatre
Common Theatre was a long-term performing arts programme delivered by ZAMEK Cultural Centre between 2016 and 2021. Over the past three years, we have hosted ten premieres, several outstanding guest performances by Polish and foreign ensembles and “repertory” revivals of the performances produced at our institution. Enjoying great interest of the audience, all events drew full house.
The project was unique in that we invited communities whose theatrical work relies on tools originally used for therapeutic purposes, as a way of overcoming limitations and life’s adversities due to various social and personal circumstances. Our main task was to provide adequate financing as well as organizational and technical support to enable programme participants to develop under the guidance of carefully selected, outstanding artists.
Common Theatre was called that for a reason, as we primarily wished to recognize the universal need to find oneself in the creative process. Acquiring the ability to articulate one’s often confused feelings and thoughts as well as finding the sincerity of the artistic message that is built through repetitive, disciplined spontaneity, is common to all those entering the world of theatre. Seeking to help their charges to overcome barriers, therapists ask them the same questions that professional actors and actresses ask themselves, while therapy participants work through them in a similar fashion.
The “commonness” also symbolized our intention and efforts to ensure that theatre created with and by persons with disabilities or people facing any other form of social exclusion is treated as a fully-fledged artistic phenomenon, subject to critical assessment according to the criteria used with events in the field of performing arts.
Visual branding of the Common Theatre project was created by Ewa Hejnowicz.
