Contributed by EU Delegation to the Philippines
Theatre is one of the greatest forms of art and is a dynamic reflection of the rich culture and heritage of the European Union.
For the first time, the EU Delegation to the Philippines in partnership with the EU member states’ embassies and cultural institutes and Philippine universities will stage a series of theatre performances “Teatro Europa” from August to September 2020.
“I am proud to present our first Teatro Europa which brings alive European playwrights who nurtured and shaped the foundations of European culture,” Mr Thomas Wiersing, Chargé d’ Affaires of the EU Delegation to the Philippines said.
This theater festival will feature famous pieces from Austria, the Czech Republic, France, Germany, Italy, Poland, and Spain, with genres of drama, comedy and tragedy. Alongside the performances of the European masterpieces, Teatro Europa will also conduct its educational component, wherein several university theatre directors will engage in dialogues with audiences from August to September 2020.
Speaking notes of EU Charge D’Affaires Thomas Wiersing to give the lineup of performances:
“Mr. Baltazar Endriga, President of Meridian International (MINT) College, Mr. Jaroslaw Szczepankiewicz, chargé d’ affaires of Poland, whom I thank for providing us a recorded message
Colleagues from the EU Member States and Cultural Institutes, Our University partners and our Media friends, Good Morning to all of you. Magan-dang u-maga sa in-yong la-hat.
I am grateful to be with you this morning to unveil the first ever Teatro Europa. Theatre is one of the greatest forms of art and is a dynamic reflection of the rich culture and heritage of the European Union.
I am proud of this initiative not only because it is the first but also we are joined by several univerities and their theatre groups. Teatro Europa will showcase seven European plays handpicked by my
colleagues from the EU Member States. They will be performed by our university partners, to whom I am thankful for their enthusiasm and creativity.
The famous European pieces that you can expect from August to September are:
- “The Green Room” by Arnošt Goldflam (Czech Republic) performed by the Rizal Technological University
- “Tango” by Sławomir Mrożek (Poland); performed by MINT College
- “Robbers” [ Die Rauber] by Friedrich Schiller (Germany); performed by MAPUA University
- “School for Wives” by Molière (France); performed by The University of Makati
- “Servant of Two Masters” by Carlo Goldoni (Italy); performed by University of the East
- “The Trickster of Seville and the Stone Guest” by Tirso de Molina (Spain); performed by Colegio de San Juan de Letran
- “Everyman” [Jedermann] by Hugo von Hofmannsthal (Austria); performed by Arellano University
Alongside the performances of the European masterpieces, Teatro Europa will also have an educational component. This means that several university theatre directors will engage in dialogues with the audience from August to September 2020. The dialogues will be live and the pre-recorded full performances will be streamed on TeatroEuropaPh facebook every Friday-Saturday of September.
This project was conceptualised to share European culture with you and were originally set in several Philippine theatre houses – until Covid-19 hit us. Thus we shifted to holding virtual screenings as we value everyone’s safety.
It has been admirable to witness that – despite the pandemic – theater organisations were all the more inspired to become even more creative in their performances, utilizing online streaming and meeting platforms.
I hope that you all enjoy our theater treats through our Teatro Europa.
Thank you very much for your attention and I give now the floor to President Endriga of MINT college.”
The partner universities and their featured European classics include: Rizal Technological University – “The Green Room” by Arnošt Goldflam (Czech Republic); MINT College – “Tango” by Sławomir Mrożek (Poland); MAPUA University – “Robbers” Friedrich Schiller (Germany); The University of Makati – “School for Wives” by Molière (France); University of the East – “Servant of Two Masters” by Carlo Goldoni (Italy); “The Trickster of Seville and the Stone Guest” by Tirso de Molina (Spain); and Arellano University – “Everyman” by Hugo von Hofmannsthal (Austria).
Teatro Europa is a novelty to our cultural activities but also novel as this will be a completely virtual festival. Hopefully, these plays will be made available live in Philippine universities when COVID19 is over. In the meantime, we hope to reach larger audiences through the performances in Teatro Europa Facebook page.
Teatro Europa promises two months of excitement as it will bring forth the talents of these university theater organizations. Be prepared with table reads, cast reveals and trivia games.
Full Performances will be streamed on Teatro Europa FB every Friday-Sunday for the month of September 2020. Before these performances, Teatro Europa will introduce to its virtual audience the theater pieces, the participating Universities, the theater organization and the cast.
“It is inspiring to see how our partner university theater organizations enthusiastically selected from the roster of European plays to interpret and perform online. It is admirable to witness that due to the pandemic they had to become more creative in their performances utilizing online streaming and meeting platforms,” Mr Wiersing said. I commend the Philippine theatre organizations as they make the most of these platforms and enhance what they can offer with costumes, props and make-up.
