“ZOOMING THEATRE”

25th February 2021, from 3 – 5 PM CET
The next episode of the cycle of international, online discussions Green Thursdays, and a new podcast series SHOW OFF
Arts and Theatre Institute Prague, online

In the days of the coronavirus pandemic, going to the theatre is no longer an option. Constant quarantining forces us to stay in front of the computer screen; we work from there, attend classes from there, watch movies from there. But can we also experience theatre from there? Is it possible to adapt this shared community experience to the online space without alienating audiences? Can we maintain the close connection –which seems to be at stake –between theatre-goers and theatre-makers without leaving our living rooms?

Optimistic and ambitious attempts have been made to live-stream plays, or to use online platforms (such as Zoom) as central elements of certain theatrical performances. Directors, actors and playwrights are trying their hardest to keep delivering a special experience in this way, but the practice raises many questions. The most important is: how can audiences be reached in these uncertain times and in such unusual circumstances? Let’s hear some answers from the creators themselves! The new episode of our international webinar series (The Show Must Go ON/OFF-Line) will focus on projects that were explicitly intended to work in the virtual environment. Our international guests, Attila Balogh, Patrícia Paixão, and Tereza Dobiášová, authors of lockdown period theatre projects, will discuss both the difficulties and new opportunities arising from this work when they sit down with our two moderators: Ádám Fónai and Attila Szabó.

As a continuation of the discussions the Arts and Theatre Institute launched its new podcast SHOW OFF. The audio-essays on the performing arts in the (post)covid eraarebased on international discussions “Green Thursdays”. The introductory episode, titled “A Third Theatrical Reform?” addresses the integration of theatre and digitality, particularly in relation to the concept of presence.Complete information is available at https://www.showoff.cz/. The podcast can be found on simplecast.com, spotify.com and Apple podcasts.

Thediscussion and podcastseries is organised by ATI’s International Cooperation Department as part of its Promotion of Czech Performing Arts Abroad program and in cooperation with partners from the European project Create to Connect -> Create to Impact and the network Performing Arts Central Europe (PACE.V4). The webinars are held in English in the Zoom platform every fourth Thursday of the month. During the discussion meetings, viewers have the opportunity to ask the guests questions. Playbacks of the meetings are subsequently available on the YouTube channel jsmeIDU.

Webinar registration link: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_FyqLKHsZQSKtTsWvuN3wEA

Contact: Barbora Comer (barbora.comer@idu.cz)