The Giant and the Little

Project facts

Project promoter:
Alma d'Arame, Associação Cultural
Project Number:
PT09-0003
Target groups
Students
Status:
Completed
Initial project cost:
€190,017
Final project cost:
€168,194
From EEA Grants:
€ 121,520
The project is carried out in:
Portugal

Description

The project develops 6 main activities: Activity 1: a new creation in the form of a wandering theatre, that will also be an educational project for the community (students, teachers, educational and cultural agents, city hall, other artistic and educational entities, incl. entitities dealing with an handicapped audience). Activity 2: a parade of giant forms, that will be the presentation of the result of the giant Norwegian forms workshop, included in the training cycle Activity 3: Exhibit: this exhibit will feature all objects created so far in all workshops and that haven't been used for the activities so far. Activity 4: External programing: the goal is to present 4 high quality shows to the students and teachers. Activity 5: Training cycle: the goal of the training cycle is focusing on the impact of art in education. Activity 6: Itinerance: During the execution, the project will visit other regions of Portugal. Having in mind the objectives established by EEA Grants,the main purpose with this project will be the empowerment of all people involved(students,teachers, cultural agents)and of the community,by envolving all of these people in the projects.

Summary of project results

“The Giant and the Little” was born from and around the concept of "empowerment", since the global theme of the Cultural Footprint programme was related to the intervention of art in education. The promoter Alma d’arame believed that empowering people, entities, teams and structures were the best way to build a relationship where the effects of an artistic intervention are realized not only in the present but also in the future. The projects were developed with this focus. Alma d'Arame promoted and produced all the projects, involving the entities in the relevant moments. This type of work left open doors for the future, not only in the level of learning, but also in the synergies created. The willingness to continue working in collaboration and not in parallel was in all entities and the relevance of artistic intervention in building a more aware and inclusive community was thus demonstrated. Empowerment and happiness are interdependent terms that we want to continue to explore in the future.

Summary of bilateral results

It was from the perspective of collaboration and mutual empowerment that the partnerships were born. The partner from Norway was Adam Bartley. Since in Montemor-o-Novo there are several artistic, cultural and educational entities working in parallel with the Schools Groups, it made sense to unite all these entities around the common project of optimizing educational processes through an artistic project, inluding the Norwegian partner. The results showed that this was the right path: the entities stopped working only in parallel and were able to work collaboratively, sharing knowledge, energy and resources, from human to technical. This collaboration, the first of its kind in Montemor-o-Novo, was important because it showed what was possible and ended up leaving the will to continue. Working together strengthens not only the individuals who participate in it but also the sum of all, and it is possible to achieve something that would not be possible separately. Adam Bartley, the Norwegian partner, has contributed also for an extraordinary driving force to the success of the project. The pinnacle was undoubtedly the debut of the “Troll Times” creation, produced jointly by Alma d'Arame and Adam Bartley. This itinerant theater brought together all the formal and almost all informal partners, which led to an entire community participating in an artistic creation. A unique moment, with powerful repercussions for the future.