Press Release / For Immediate Release
FIRST EVER ETCMEETING OF THEATRE-MAKERS IN ALBANIA
Guest Speakers from Europe’s Leading Performing Arts Networks Contribute to Conference
Berlin, March 2013–For the first time ever over 50 European theatre-makers convened in the Albanian capital of Tirana for the spring General Assembly of the European Theatre Convention (ETC). The meeting, which was hosted by the National Theatre of Albania and ran from 21 – 24 March, marked the premiere gathering of ETC members during the organization’s 25th anniversary year and the Albanian location of the conference highlighted the continuing expansion across the continent of Europe’s oldest public theatre network.
The conference, which was officially opened at a reception on Thursday 21 March by the artistic director of the National Theatre, Mr. Kristaq Skrami, in the presence of the Cultural Minister of Albania, Mr. Aldo Bumçi, offered two thought-provoking days of debate. Theatre professionals from across Europe convened to discusshow performing arts networks, in all their diverse configurations, can offer individual theatres a space to thrive in a collective approach to the challenges of Europe’s current crises. Guests from other key European theatre networks joined their ETC colleagues in an open panel debate on Friday 22 March to review the opportunities that networks - big and small, developed through new models or standardized structures – can offer their members. The impressive line-up of panelists were - Manfred Beilharz from the International Theatre Institute, Staffan Valdemar Holm from mitos21, Hugo de Greef from the European Festival Associationand Christa Müller representing the ETC.
ETC delegates also met in special working sessions to considerup-and-coming collaborative artistic projects, including theETC Spring Theatre Tour (18-24 April 2013), a unique trans-European bus journey wherein theatre’s role in the reinvigoration of Europe is debated en route and in ETC theatres from west to Eastern Europe. Final preparations for theYoung Europe 2 Festival, which will run from 13 – 16 May in Theater an der Parkaue, Berlin, Germany, and which is the concluding event of the successful ETC flagship project, in progress since 2011, were also discussed. Andas one great project comes to a close, others start to be planned. Two major future ETCinitiatives are the Art of Ageing (2013 -2015), an ambitious intercultural research and new play creation project which engages with the realities and challenges of Europe’s ageing societies, and a pioneering Audience Development Studyand Strategyfor Public Theatres based on best practices which will be the first study of its kind to come out of Europe. Both of these projects kick off this year and aim to build on the hard work and reputation of the last 25 years of the ETC in its continuous contribution to the enrichment of European theatre.
The National Theatre of Kosovawas also voted in as the newest ETC member. Founded in 1946, the National Theatre of Kosova, which is based in the Kosovar capital of Pristina, has undergone many trials and changes over the years, but since the end of the war in 1999 the theatre has developed a repertoire of important plays from both local and world stages. Funded by the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport of the Republic of Kosova, the organisation is now eager to be part of and contribute to a wider European theatrical culture.
In the closing session ETC members remarked that in reflecting on its past 25 years and the years of collaborative work to come, the organisation showed its true strength not to be in its growing size or longevity but in the diversity of its membership. This divergence in scope, aspiration and aesthetics is, they noted, how the ETCcontinues to create and contribute to a theatre which is addressing the challenges of Europe’s current crises.
Notes to Editors –The European Theatre Convention (ETC) founded in 1988, is a non-profit-making membership organization representing the publicly funded theatre sector in over 20 countries. Its aims are to create, protect and promote the art of theatre and its linguistic diversity in Europe and beyond; to act as a transnational theatre network to foster cultural diversity and intercultural dialogue; to act as a platform for professional exchange, development and capacity building of theatre-makers in an international context and to advocate for the public theatre sector at EU, member state and local levels. Further information –
For more information, please visit the ETC website or contact Heidi Wiley, ETC, Email: , Tel: + 49 30 28441207,
The ETC and its activities are jointly financed by its member theatres.
ETC’s work programme has been funded with support from the European Commission.
[This publication reflects the views only of the author, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be
made of the information contained therein.]