In preparation for a future European report, RESEO and Opera Europa are seeking scientific reports focusing on projects carried out within cultural institutions either completed or taking place before February 2024.
Call for Contributions
Every citizen has the fundamental right to “participate in any way in cultural life” (Saez, 2012). This participation can take shape in various forms of artistic experience: seeing, acting, thinking – an unconscious contact, due to chance, obligatory, voluntary, passionate, moving or a priori without any impact.
Public services promote, to different degrees and from one country to another, citizens’ access to culture: directly through the offer by public funded institutions to citizens or indirectly through the support of citizen initiatives. In the category of institutions mandated by the State to support cultural life, opera houses have long been experts in facilitating the “see” aspect of the artistic experience and proposing ideas for the “think” aspect. Since the 1980s and 1990s, they have been increasingly involved in the action component, taking over from grassroots education and national education services.
Within opera houses, and not necessarily at the center of their governance, specific departments, known as according to the institution and the country of origin as cultural action services, outreach departments, cultural development services, education services, departments for music mediation, implement the action component of the artistic experience. By questioning the notion of public services, they redefine the term of “audience” itself: what kind of audiences are we addressing? Who are the “other” audiences, who do not spontaneously attend opera or dance performances or concerts? How can we define those “other” audiences : by age, by cultural, geographical, economic or physical location? And how can we give these other audiences access to their cultural rights?
In preparation for the Spring 2024 conference in Vienna, Austria, Opera Europa and RESEO will jointly pilot an overview of the opera sector’s programming aimed at that “other” audience.
RESEO wishes to reveal the variety of existing initiatives (productions, performances, workshops, trainings, conferences) within operas, orchestras and dance companies with the will to witness art as a reflection of the world around us.
Which societal issues are brought to light by culture and by “participatory – citizen – societal” projects?
Audiences/Participants/Non-professional:
- Inclusion and accessibility
- Special needs and disability
- Cultural capability of communities
- Cultural rights
Impact of opera, ballet and concerts
- From personality development to « a priori non-therapeutic »
- Measuring impact on participants and communities
- Health/ Wellbeing/Mental Health
The role of opera, ballet and concerts on:
- Climate change crisis
- Aging society
- Migration of individuals
- Digitalization
- Citizenship
Professionals
- New competence and skill for artists engaging in participatory projects
- New profiles of cultural-project management
- Supporting diversity of professional artists
Methodology
RESEO and Opera Europa call for scientific reports focussing on projects carried out within cultural institutions, projects that have already taken place or will take place before February 2024.
Formats can be multiple and varied: accompanying protocols, surveys, project reports, anthropological analysis, filmed ethnography, podcast or visual writing.
RESEO’s scientific and expert committee will select the projects to be presented during Opera Europa’s Spring Conference and publish a larger selection within a European report. This report will be based on on resources from the network, a literature review including reference, a repertory of existing initiatives as well a series of qualitative interviews with pioneers, various stakeholders of the sector, as well as representatives from European Commission
Please send your application containing an abstract or summary as well as a short CV to research@reseo.org with object “Research project 2024” by 30 September 2023.
Main photo “The Snow Queen”, Silent City Festival © Compagnia Teatrale L’Albero