EEPAP meeting in Krakow, Poland, 5-6 October 2011

Artists, curators, critics, cultural managers, and producers from eighteen countries of Central and Eastern Europe met in Krakow during the first meeting of the East European Platform for Performing Arts.

- We want to get to know each other and talk. We want to show how this project is being realised - said Marta Keil, curator and author of the project. The basic goal of EEPAP is to help artists and curators of this part of Europe and to facilitate mutual contact and exchange of experiences.

80 guests from 18 countries attended the two-day meeting in Krakow. They represented Armenia, Azerbaijan, Kosovo, Georgia, Moldova, Ukraine, Belarus, Slovenia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Slovakia, Croatia, Serbia, Macedonia and Poland. All of them had the opportunity to present their work as well as their theaters or organizations. This element was very important for the participants as it gave them an opportunity to meet and learn about each other.

Additionally, the preliminary findings of the reports on the situation of theaters and dance scenes in the participant countries were presented. The goal of the reports is to pinpoint the most important problems in the region and to identify the issues that need to be changed first. Basing on these reports, the participants of the meeting discussed what should be the network’s next step. Marta Keil reminded the participants that EEPAP is not limited to its website (www.eepap.org) where creators and institutions can present themselves, but also constitutes a platform for educational projects for curators and producers, as well as residential programs for artists.

- East European Performing Arts Platform is organized as part of the I, CULTURE Program for Foreign Polish Presidency of the EU and coordinated by the Adam Mickiewicz Institute. The end of our presidency does not mean the end of the project, and EEPAP will continue to support artists, theaters and dance companies as an independent organization - said Marta Keil.

The Institute of Theatre is a partner of the project. The event took place at the Krakow Theatrical Reminiscences and accompanied the IETM meeting.