Creative Europe
Desk UK
for Culture

THIRD COUNTRY COOPERATION PROJECTS WITH ARMENIA, AZERBAIJAN, BELARUS, EGYPT, GEORGIA, JORDAN, MOLDOVA, OCCUPIED PALESTINIAN TERRITORY, TUNISIA AND UKRAINE

The project worked with five partners from four countries including Georgia to produce five different interpretations of the Carmen story. This is a quintessentially European story – originally a Russian poem, then a novella by a French author, then the world’s most popular opera, first performed in London. The project started with a new adaptation which formed the basis of the subsequent interpretations, each of which explored themes relevant to intercultural dialogue – issues of identity, the role of language, the importance of nationality. The interpretations spanned a wide range of artistic genres from choreo drama to an intense workshop broadcast on the web to interactive radio drama where the individual audience member shapes the content to traditional theatre and broadcast radio drama. The final showcase was a fusion of cultural traditions and art forms which brought London’s European diaspora together.