Connecting Cultures: A Journey of Expression and Discovery at Theatre in Palm
Hello, my name is Agathe Mazur, I am a web design student. I was able to participate in the Theater in Palm in Lisbon thanks to the ETFI. I learned a lot of things, including things that were not directly related to the festival itself. Firstly, I met lots of great people who come from very different countries and cultures such as Finland, Hungary, Ireland, Greece, Sweden and many others. Of course we all spoke English to interact with each other, which allowed me to improve my own level (my skills were rather average, I could understand reading but I did not practice orally).
I think it was the most new thing in my daily life: having to speak in a language other than my own and being able to make myself understood. Just as much as I had to concentrate and communicate a lot with others to understand them well. Language is a wonderful tool for connecting with others, but not only that. I had the opportunity to speak with my body language during a workshop, it was totally new, fascinating and fulfilling. We were all in a room and moved freely through the space, without speaking. We just let the body move, express itself. As if we were dancing. It is said that dance is the first language of all time.
First of all, Elena, the one who led the workshop, suggested that everyone choose a person, at random, and go meet them spontaneously. “Hello, where are you from, are you coming?” and then we had to add a question of our choice. I met Andriana, who came from Greece. I asked her what her favorite animal was, she answered the horse. Then I met Josefin, who came from Sweden. I asked her what her biggest dream was, she answered: to be a mother. Then, I met Kerttu, who came from Finland.
Elena told us that this workshop was inspired by “Hinge”, a dating app. I didn’t know but from what she explained to us, I understood the link between the workshop and this app. It was about meeting the other without any judgment, simply starting a conversation and seeing what happens. I really liked this simplicity – purity, you could even say.
Then we danced! We created a choreography (it was super sporty hahah), we connected with each other, still without speaking. A few people lined up facing the wall and the rest of the participants had to approach behind them slowly, without a sound. The exercise was, for people who didn’t see us coming, to turn around when they thought/felt that their partner was close. It was very interesting because several times I turned around immediately when my partner arrived behind me. Just instinctively. How to explain this?
During another workshop we had the opportunity to discover the imagination of others through drawing. The exercise was to inspire ourselves through the play “Huis Clos” by Jean-Paul Sartre, and to imagine “What is hell for us?”. Then everyone presented their work one after the other. Someone imagined a room full of cameras everywhere. Plastic seats inside a subway entrance, and anonymous people gathered inside. There was an elevator door, the lights were green and yellow. The atmosphere was suffocating. The atmosphere is heavy. Someone else shared a room with us with mirrors on every wall, and even on the floor and ceiling. Another person created an incredible pop-up with windows and doors cut out of black paper, it was crazy! And what I find extraordinary is to confront several minds, several ways of creating. Everyone has a unique way of thinking, of imagining, of representing things. With the same exercise, we all created something different, and meaningful.
Agathe Mazur (ETFI)
