Taburopa

– an international theatre production.

– 2014 –

Designed to run for 18 months, TABUROPA is an international research and theatre project on the topic of taboos that will be conducted in four selected countries: Portugal, Poland, Belgium and Germany. Based on their respective historical and cultural traditions, these four countries each stand for a different set of experiences in dealing with taboos and thus exemplify the diversity of Europe.

In workshops, public rehearsals, performances and lectures, international experienced theatre producers, choreographers, actors and dancers will explore the cultural, historical and everyday significance of taboos in their countries. How the topic is tackled artistically will be based on research carried out by artists in the participating countries. Country-specific experiences with taboos will be jointly analysed by artists working together across borders and discussed with the public in performances. In addition, the participating artists will compile their own ‘artists’ diaries’. Through these activities TABUROPA will foster comprehension of a real-life European ‘canon of values’, of the foundation for patterns of social action that could promote the emergence of a European public.

TABUROPA will put together new groups of international artists

TABUROPA will stage meetings of artists with different approaches to their work and styles. This will produce an intensive, original and creative exchange across national borders. Four companies come together in the project as artistic partners with equal rights: André Teodósio and the Teatro Praga (Lisbon/Portugal), Joanna Wichovska and Agnieszka Blońska with the Association of Culture Practitioners (Warsaw/Poland), Arco Renz and his company kobalt.works (Brussels/Belgium) and André Erlen from Futur3 (Cologne/Germany).

Common to all the participating artists is their curiosity about the divergent character of the different artistic positions that will flow into the project. The explicit goal is to bring about a confrontation between different approaches in the performing arts. Through a process of cooperation the artists’ own positions should be broken down and disappear so they discover new things and learn to understand their counterpart.
This aspiration is expressed in the concept of exchange. The respective artistic directors will work together with the ensembles of other companies in a third country. This will lead to an intensive confrontation with different artistic positions and, above all, different cultural backgrounds and conditions. The partnership will help generate ‘foreign perspectives’ on a different cultural environment and make them productive.

Production: Sommerblut Kulturfestival e.V. , Rolf Emmerich
Artistic director: André Erlen
Project management: Gregor Leschig, Rolf Emmerich
Partners: kobalt.works (Brussels, Belgium), Teatro Praga (Lisbon/Portugal), Association of Culture Practitioners (Warsaw/Poland), Futur3 (Cologne/Germany)
Project development: André Erlen (Cologne), Arco Renz (Brussels), André Teodósio (Lisbon), Joanna Wichovska (Warsaw)