JYT workshop, understanding Dub Poetry, The Radiator Factory and exploration of parkour, rap and street culture, along with a Leadership Summit dance workshop.

To find out more about CTW companies and The Leadership Summit, explore the website or visit our Ning www.contactingtheworld.ning.com

CTW companies will be running public workshops throughout the festival week. To find out more, check out the CTW 2010 brochure.

The video consists of workshop footage led by CTW companies 20 Stories High, Liverpool and 84 Theater, Iran. Along with an interview with one of the participants from 20 Stories High.

CTW Reps

The company representatives finally came to Manchester last weekend for two days of intense meetings, workshops, a lot of food and to mark the start of festival anticipation! Sadly members of 84theatre and Jamaica Youth Theatre were unable to attend due to logistical reasons but all the other members can be seen here on the steps outside the Town Hall in Manchester, half way through a city centre tour!

65 days to go!

Image: Poetry Circle Nowhere (manifesto)
Zoom in to see it properly!

Contacting the World has started in earnest.

In January 12 diverse performance companies from 10 countries, comprising 150 young people, were selected to take part in this unique international collaboration that will culminate in a summer festival of premiere performances.

July 19 – 25….keep these dates in your diary!

View welcome video to the 12 companies from Contact’s artistic director, Baba Isreal

In the first month of Contacting the World 2010, European and international companies were randomly twinned (see the twinning video). They have since been busy writing and sharing their manifestos, sending boxes to their twins with items that speak of who they are and they have been getting to know each other on the community website. They have also said ‘hello’ to one another on the online community, some with poetry, some with videos…

…to find out more about the 12 companies go to ‘CTW 2010 Companies’ or join the online community and talk to them!

Gallery of CTW 2010 Companies

Check out the gallery showing the 12 companies involved in Contacting the World 2010.

January 2010 marks the launch of Contacting the World 2010, Contact’s revolutionary international theatre project for young and emerging artists.   Contacting the World brings together the newest, most exciting and innovative young theatre companies from across the globe to help redefine the way in which collaboration and internationalism combine in the global community.  150 young people from twelve young theatre companies from countries including Jamaica, Palestine, Iran, Demark, The Netherlands, USA, UK, Switzerland, South Africa and India will be randomly twinned to engage in a seven month long exchange process to create brand new, visionary and truly global theatre/art.

Leading up to the Festival in July 2010, the journey of these young artists will be played out simultaneously across the globe and revealed on line as the collaboration intensifies. CTW10 looks set to stage a truly global event Manchester firmly at its epicentre.

For further press enquiries contact

James Stanley

Communications Officer

Contact

+ 44 (0)161 274 0627

Note to the Editor

Conceived in 2002, Contact’s unique initiative has taken place every two years so far involving over 40 countries and just under 1000 young people.

Contact is one of the UK’s leading, award winning arts organisations working with young people.  It is based in Manchester in the North West of England.

Companies selected for participation in CTW10 include

10p Mix Up, Manchester

20 Stories High, Liverpool

Outhouse Collective,London

Junges Theater Basel, Basel, Switzerland

Nowhere; The Poetry Circle Nowhere, Amsterdam, Netherlands

The Radiator Factory, Copenhagen, Denmark

First Wave Hip Hop Theater Ensemble, Madison, USA

Jamaica Youth Theatre, Kingston, Jamaica

84theater, Tehran, Iran

CuciOtak, East Java, Indonesia

Sophiatown Ambassadors, Johannesburg, South Africa

Working Title 2.0 , Mumbai, India

Contacting the World is grateful for the support of its key partner, the Arts Council of England.  The Festival will take place in Manchester in July 2010.

Contacting the World was granted the International Fund for the promotion of culture’s quality label in 2005 in recognition of its value by UNESCO.

www.contact-theatre.org

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