Join us and other professionals on a daytime cruise, where you can take in the breathtaking scenery of the River Tees while networking with international and UK professionals. Tickets are individually priced at £11.95 per person and will be purchasable before the cruise starts. More information is available at teessideprincess.co.uk
If you would like to join the boat tour, please let us know by emailing info@xtrax.org.uk
East Asian panel with delegates from several countries including China, Japan, Korea, Singapore and Hong Kong
Friday, 2nd August – 5:00 pm – 6:30 pm
ARC, Stockton Arts Centre, Dovecot St, Stockton-on-Tees TS18 1LL
This event has also been supported by the British Council Japan and the Asia-Europe Foundation.
This event provides a networking and information sharing opportunity for artists, promoters and producers looking to develop their understanding of the outdoor arts and festival scene across several East Asian countries, aiming to kickstart conversations on building international partnerships and collaborations between the UK and Asian outdoor arts sectors.
Our speakers for this session have wide-ranging experience of working in Korea, Singapore, China, Hong Kong and Japan. Whilst the countries discussed here may be geographically close, they represent a diversity of artistic approaches, cultural backgrounds and presentation opportunities.
International demand for outdoor and site-responsive works is growing, as cultural producers seek new ways to connect audiences and communities with their environments. In the context of a growing UK appetite for connecting with East Asia and an increase in mobility opportunities for artists and cultural professionals, insights from the panel will provide an interesting starting point for those exploring international touring and collaboration.
Speakers;
Cui Yin Mok, Independent producer, Singapore – https://tsuei.co/
Crystal Deng, Artistic Director of Beijing 707 N-Theatre and Xintiandi Festival
Rhanhee Lee, President of the Korea Street Arts Association and Artistic Director of Ulsan promenade festival
Andy Lo, producer of Hugh Cho (Hong Kong)
Worry Kinoshita, Strange Seed Festival in Shizuoka, Japan, co-organised with SPAC (Shizuoka Performing Arts Center)
Sean Gandini, co-founder of Gandini Juggling, with significant touring experience in East Asia
Reception in partnership with ASEF and the Department for International Trade
Friday, 2nd August – 6:30 pm – 7:30 pm
ARC, Stockton Arts Centre, Dovecot St, Stockton-on-Tees TS18 1LL
XTRAX Shorts – Saturday, 3rd August | 10 am – 12 pm
ARC, Stockton Arts Centre, Dovecot St, Stockton-on-Tees TS18 1LL
XTRAX Shorts is our signature brand of artists pitch sessions where artists and companies give imaginative presentations about outdoor projects in development to an audience of UK and international festival and event representatives, producers, and others working in the sector. XTRAX Shorts is followed by networking, providing those in attendance with the opportunity to find out more about these projects.
XTRAX Shorts supports artists by giving them the chance to present a project to people who can potentially commission, present or support it in other ways including in-kind or low-cost provision of rehearsal space, mentoring, or advocacy. For festival programmers and event producers, it complements the showcase programme by providing them with an additional chance to network, and find out about new work. Projects presented as part of XTRAX Shorts have often gone on to be supported, commissioned or booked by those in attendance.
The following projects have been selected to present:
Barely Methodical – No Regrets
Gandini Juggling – stacKcats / Smashed 2
Kamchatka – Alter
Nii Kwartey Owoo – Kweku Ananse
Paul O’Donnell – Frying Pan Orchestra
Requardt & Rosenberg – Future Cargo
Sixteen RPM – The Carpeting
Talawa – The Tide
The Fabularium Ltd. – The Hare and the Moon
Tmesis – Wicked Woman
XTRAX Shorts will be chaired by Daryl Beeton and Nicola Miles-Wildin, from Wild N Beets
The Writing’s on the Streets, Total Theatre Magazine Workshop
Saturday, 3rd August | 1:30 pm – 3:30 pm
Led by Dorothy Max Prior – artist, writer and editor of Total Theatre Magazine
ARC, Stockton Arts Centre, Dovecot St, Stockton-on-Tees TS18 1LL
How do we write about Outdoor Arts? Most training in critical writing focuses on ways to interrogate a scripted play, and presumes the existence of a written play-text. So how do you go about reviewing and writing about outdoor arts, circus, site-specific theatre and other performing arts work that is highly visual and physical, and often doesn’t have a written text to refer to? How do we approach work that is cross-artform? And if work is presented in public space, can we separate content and context?
This practical workshop – for artists, writers, producers, and anyone else interested in the subject – will investigate different ways that we can document and celebrate Outdoor Arts and other alternative forms of art-making; will look at ways to take a more experiential and sensory approach to reviewing; and will explore ways to give constructive rather than destructive criticism. The workshop is offered as part of the ongoing Artists as Writers programme, linked to the creation of the Total Theatre Magazine Print Archive, which has seen all of the magazine’s print editions digitised and made available free online at totaltheatre.org.uk/archive
Dancing outdoors: panel discussion
Sunday 4 August 2019 | 10:30 am– 12:00 pm
The Point at ARC, Stockton Arts Centre, Dovecot Street, Stockton on Tees, TS18 1LL
This event aims to discuss, debate and share opinions around dance for outdoor contexts. What are our perceptions of outdoor dance? What defines dance created for the public space? What are the pros, cons, stimuli, considerations and motivations that programmers and artists bear in mind when thinking about dance for an outdoor context?
Our speakers for this session have wide-ranging experience of the outdoor dance sector and present a variety of voices which will undoubtedly lead to a lively discussion.
It is organised as part of the XTRAX & SIRF International Outdoor Arts showcase, which will take place from 1 – 4 August in the context of one of the largest outdoor arts festivals in the UK.
Confirmed speakers:
Tena Busquets, Artistic Director of Sismògraf Festival (Olot, Spain)
Sho Shibata, Executive Producer at Stopgap Theatre Company (UK)
Phil Hargreaves, Creative Producer at Deda (UK)
Satchie Noro, Artistic Director, choreographer and dancer of Furinkai (France)
This session will be chaired by Kristian Pellissier, Arts Council England Relationship Manager – Dance
The session will start with short presentations by the panel speakers and will be followed by a series of reflections/provocations/questions to prompt a discussion amongst the speakers as well as with the delegates attending the session.
Drinks at the Georgian Theatre – Friday and Saturday
Join us and other delegates after a busy day to relax with a drink
Closing Party at Borge Restaurant – Sunday 10:30pm – 2:30am
Meals at ARC – Every day
Delegates will be able to benefit from a 20% discount at No 60, inside the ARC, simply by showing their name badge. You will be in the same building as the artists, but not in the same room while eating as capacity is limited. You can read the menu here.
Delegate Bags and Name Badges collection
Bags and badges will be available to collect at ARC, on the 1st floor. The XTRAX team will be available before the start of each Professional Event, from Friday 2nd August at 4:30 pm.
The XTRAX Staff will also be on hand at lunch and dinner time at ARC, where delegates can leave promotional material.