performing neighbourhood
Partners: Volcano Theatre (Swansea, Wales) and Ost-Passage Theater e.V. (Leipzig, Germany)
Image © Volcano Theatre
“This new partnership between two organisations at the intersection of performing arts and community culture, Ost-Passage Theater in Leipzig and Volcano Theatre in Swansea, is an immersive exchange between teams who are working to revitalize post-industrial urban spaces in diverse neighbourhoods affected by social precarity and cultural exclusion.
Through local exploration, playful experiment, and collaboration with grassroots artists, audiences and cultural workers, the teams will learn from each other’s best and worst practices, platform voices from their communities, and build lasting connections that will prepare the ground for future projects. The communities will be connected via a live-link “Dosentelefon” booth.”
Volcano Theatre and Ost-Passage Theater e.V.
About the partners
Volcano Theatre
Volcano is an independent theatre company and community arts centre based in Swansea city centre. We are based in a disused supermarket on the city’s High Street, a location that is amongst the most deprived areas in Wales. In addition to devising and performing original theatre productions, we provide regular workshops and weekly sessions providing access to free, high quality artistic, creative experiences for our community, from children through to adults. Our multi-use venue houses our “Bunker Theatre”, community space, cinema and gallery. Our bar and café space hosts a diverse programme of cultural and social events. We welcome over 10,000 visitors and participants each year. We collaborate - with artists, performers, other organisations and community groups, schools and colleges. Our space in the city is for all sorts of things – for climbing, laughing, learning, putting up pictures, drinking, thinking, talking, dancing and meeting new friends.
https://volcanotheatre.wales/
Ost-Passage Theater e.V.
The Ost-Passage Theater is a place of social encounter and creative collaboration in Leipzig’s East, a neighborhood marked by high migrant diversity and limited infrastructure. As a neighborhood stage, we stand for a vibrant district culture that is open and accessible across lifestyles, backgrounds, and classes. This makes us a vital voice and a strong source of momentum in the area. Together with those who wish to open, expand, and deepen spaces of participation with us, we advance our shared ideas, visions, and utopias. Regardless of origin, social status, gender, age, or profession, everyone is warmly invited to contribute on or behind the stage. As a socio-cultural organization, we work at the intersection of cultural and political education, focusing on community and amateur theater. Since 2018, with an annual program of over 200 theater, film, literature, and music events, we have reached and inspired a broad spectrum of people.
