Almost ready to kick off now. The conference program is online now. Read it below or download it in English or Hungarian.
The GAP
drama and theatre education
A practice centred international conference
Organised by: InSite Drama
Co-organiser: Örkény Theatre
29th-31st July, 2016
Venue: Örkény Theatre, Budapest
An English language conference, Hungarian translation provided for plenary proceedings
Theatre and drama education are important modes of exploring the world, ourselves and others in it. There are various methodologies within the field, but our conference focuses on an approach that considers drama as an art form that highlights the complexities and the socio-historic dimensions of human situations.
The participants of the conference will gain insight into the practical implementation of contemporary playwright Edward Bond’s drama theory. Following Bond’s thinking the conference will also start out from examining the crisis of our times and the problems faced by generation Y and Z. We will then focus on key concepts of Bondian theory and the possibilities of using these in practice to explore problems. The conference will then turn to planning and investigating the possibilities of implementing the theory and practice in specific art or pedagogy projects.
The concepts will be explored through a variety of forms; participatory workshops, ateliers, planning workshops, keynote talks and discussion.
We believe it is important for knowledge from the social sciences, other art forms and practices of social engagement to influence our drama and educational work. Keynote speakers will reflect on the discussed problems from a sociological or philosophical perspective, while artists from visual arts will also offer their approaches. We will also create space to reflect on the dilemmas of civic activism.
New information and further details about the conference will be constantly shared on the event’s Facebook page.
Friday, 29th July
The first day of the conference concentrates on the problems faced by the Y and Z generations, and the crisis of our times. We will engage in these subjects through keynotes in the morning and through workshops in the afternoon.
| 09:00 – 10:00 | Arrival – registration (including an interactive installation) |
| 10:00 – 13.00 | Welcome and opening of the conferenceKeynotes:
· Imagination and political action – Zsolt Bagi (Hungary), philosopher, University of Pécs · Generation Y/Z and political activeness – Domonkos Sik, (Hungary) sociologist, Eötvös Loránd University · Crisis and education – a Chinese perspective – Cao Xi (China), creative director, Drama Rainbow Centre, Beijing Discussion opened to conference participants, chaired by Adam Bethlenfalvy (Hungary), TIE practitioner, InSite Drama |
| 13:00 – 14:00 | Lunch break |
| 14:00 – 15:30 | Workshop 1. – Generation Y4 parallel workshops exploring the situation of Generation Y dramatically – the workshops are led by young participants of the youth exchange from China, Malta, United Kingdom and Hungary |
| 15:30 – 16:00 | Coffee break |
| 16:00 – 18:00 | Workshop 2. – The crisis through drama4 parallel workshops offering the possibility of exploring the contemporary social crisis through drama and theatre
Participants can choose from: A) Myths for today – Kostas Amoiropoulos (Greece), teacher, specialist in drama education and Bondian theory B) Story on migration – Chris Cooper (UK), playwright, director, drama teacher C) Realising reality in drama: imagination at work– Cao Xi (China), creative director, Drama Rainbow Centre, Beijing D) Our history – Adam Bethlenfalvy (Hungary), TIE practitioner, InSite Drama |
| 18:00 – 18:45 | Dinner break |
| 18:45 – 20:30 | Presentation and analysis of a work in progress:Humana Fragmenta – a play written for the project by Chris Cooper (UK), playwright, director, drama teacher. The play will be framed and analysed by the author. |
| Conference bar – venue tbc. |
Saturday, 30th of July
The second day of the conference focuses on key concepts of Edward Bond’s theory. These will be explored through keynotes, workshops and special planning workshops, so participants have the chance to engage in them in different modes.
| 09:00 – 10:00 | Registration – development of installation |
| 10:00 – 13.00 | Keynotes:· Freedom in theatre – Adrian Buckle (Malta), director, Unifaun Theatre
· Mapping Drama and Educational Theatre – Adam Cziboly (Hungary), drama practitioner, InSite Drama · The Crisis in Drama in Education – Imaging the Real – Prof David Davis (UK), professor, Birmingham City University · The Need for Drama – Chris Cooper (UK), playwright, director, drama teacher Discussion opened to conference participants, chaired by Adam Bethlenfalvy (Hungary), TIE practitioner, InSite Drama |
| 13:00 – 14:00 | Lunch break |
| 14:00 – 18:00
The workshops include a 15 minute coffee break.
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The workshops offer specific examples and engage the participants in structuring an art-educational process using concepts coming from Edward Bond’s theory.Workshops:
A) Structuring drama in education with Prof David Davis, Kostas Amoiropoulos and Adam Bethlenfalvy B) Structuring theatre in education (TIE) with Chris Cooper C) Structuring theatre processes with Cao Xi D) Structuring non-drama arts projects with Ceri Townsend and Adam Cziboly |
| 18:00 – 19:00 | Dinner break |
| 19:00 – 21:00 | Projects examples – different arts educational and social arts projects from important Hungarian organisations in the field:· Örkény IRAM – the Örkény Theatre’s Youth and Education Initiatives
· Káva Theatre · ARTEMISSZIÓ Foundation · Round Table Theatre in Education Company |
| 21:00 | Conference bar – venue tbc. |
Sunday, 31st of July
The third day of the conference looks at the possibilities and challenges of implementing projects. Invited speakers will offer examples of challenges faced by arts based social projects. We will look at further possibilities of implementation through a creative project planning workshop. The three days of linked up activities will end with a joint reflection and summary.
| 09:00 – 10:00 | Registration – development of installation |
| 09:50 – 10:45 | The Giant’s Embrace – participatory Theatre in Education programme in ‘Hunglish’ (InSite Drama – Kerekasztal TIE) |
| 11:00 – 13.00 | Keynotes: · The responsibility of the activist – Éva Tessza Udvarhelyi (Hungary), chair, School of Public Life
· Contemporary art and autism – Hajnalka Tarr (Hungary), visual artist, artistic director, www.autisticart.hu · Making the Gap – Ceri Townsend (Wales), mentor, founder of The GAP Arts Project Discussion opened to conference participants, chaired by Adam Bethlenfalvy (Hungary), TIE practitioner, InSite Drama |
| 13:00 – 14:00 | Lunch break |
| 14:00 – 17:30 | Project development workshop – led by Adam Cziboly (Hungary), drama practitioner, InSite DramaThis workshop will provide a framework for understanding the process of developing arts and educational projects. We will work in 15-20 small groups, each group developing a specific project idea raised by one of the participants.
Through a series of practical exercises, participants will get the opportunity to build their own framework of questions that need to be addressed to plan and implement their project – whether it is a couple of days of school activities or an international theatre coproduction. |
| 17:30 – 18:00 | Coffee break |
| 18:00 – 19:00 | Closing reflection |
| 20:00 – | Conference Closing Party – venue tbc. |
Join the Facebook page (www.facebook.com/facingthegap) and keep in touch with this international community!
Conference director: Adam Bethlenfalvy (InSite Drama)
Conference coordinator: Julcsi Szabó (InSite Drama)
Conference board: Adam Cziboly (InSite Drama)
Adrian Buckle (Unifaun Theatre)
Cao Xi (Drama Rainbow)
Ceri Townsend (The GAP Arts Project)
Chris Cooper (Accident Time)
www.facingthegap.eu facingthegap2016@gmail.com