ABOUT THE PLATFORM
"From Pilsen to Munich it is closer than to Ostrava, from Budějovice to Řezno the journey takes as long as to Ústí nad Labem. We have accessible train and art infrastructure. The platform thus builds on geographical proximity, as well as proximity to sub-problems of the art sector. The aim of the platform is to facilitate mutual acquaintance and create a bridge for individual cooperation. "
Petr Dlouhý
EMERGENCE OF THE PLATFORM
The idea of establishing the platform arose in 2020 on the grounds of the European Association for Independent Performing Arts (EAIPA), and the first mapping activities began the following year. The founders of the platform, the Bavarian-Czech team consisting of Petr Dlouhý, Kryštof Koláček, Julia Opitz and Axel Tangerding, together with representatives of a several-member delegation representing Czech festivals, residency programs, independent art and cultural centers went on a research trip to Munich and Nuremberg. The goal of the trip was to establish the first relationships, to include important actors in the platform , to introduce Czech professionals to their Bavarian counterparts, to introduce independent Czech art in Munich through the staging of Reality Surfing by the Czech collective PYL. The excursion was supported by the Czech-German Future Fund, the Czech Center in Munich and the Bayerische Akademie der Schönen Kunste.
In September 2022, the activities of the nascent platform continued with the support of the Czech Center in Munich with a research trip by Axel Tangerding and VFDKB chairwoman Daniela Aue to Prague and Kutná Hora. During the trip, they met with representatives of the Czech-German Future Fund, the Goethe Institute of the Czech Republic, the directorate of the Czech Centers, the New Network and others. They took part in the Kutná Hora International Theater Festival in Kutná Hora.
At the end of 2022, the Bavarian-Czech team presented the newly established platform to representatives of the Ministry of Culture of the Czech Republic, the Goethe Institute, the Czech-German Future Fund and other actors in the field of independent performing arts.
OBJECTIVES OF THE PLATFORM
The Bavarian-Czech Platform project creates a new structured and continuous exchange in the field of independent performing arts between the Czech Republic and Bavaria based on the cooperation between the Association of Independent Theaters of the Czech Republic and the Bavarian Association of Independent Performing Arts (Der Verband Freie Darstellende Künste Bayerne, VFDKB)._cc781905-5cde-3194 -bb3b-136bad5cf58d_
The starting point for cooperation is the belief that it is necessary to look for long-term partnerships in nearby locations, between which mobility is ecologically undemanding, which share a similar cultural background and at the same time are capable of cultural enrichment.
Another way out is the current lack of structured networking of representatives operating in both locations. Although the Czech Republic and Bavaria are very close geographically, there are still no structurally grasped cultural exchanges. These happen either along very individual trajectories that do not have the character of long-term functioning, or not at all. The project thus becomes the initiator of the first step to create a more stable and umbrella platform that would facilitate mutual meetings, get to know each other and help to carry out partial trans-regional exchanges including artistic residencies, trips of professionals to festivals, participation in conferences.