Our Footsteps
Political Participatory Theatre Now More Than Ever

Pictures by Simone Giacomini
Read our Manifesto and Press Release

Our Footsteps
Our Teaser

A Theatre Performance
Migrants’ narratives as artistic affirmation of our human dignity and a call for political awareness

Our Footsteps – Donate
A Theatre Performance
Migrants’ narratives as an artistic affirmation of our human dignity and a call for political awareness

Picture by Unai Risueño

More than 20 migrants/refugees artists or performers in 10 languages. The result of 5 months of playful improvisational rehearsals, where through self-representation, migrants share stories of their journey and living in the Netherlands facing a long lasting uncertainty after having crossed many, colonial, borders.

Until now we have been able to keep this beautiful independent project sustainable by receiving contributions for travel costs, rehearsal space or theatre spaces.
But now we are out of budget and since all our performers are Migrants/Refugees, we are not be able to support the team costs.
Note this is a non-profit project and that all participants, including project facilitators and directors, are volunteers

What the funds will be used for:
Travel costs of the performers
Renting rehearsal space
Renting the theatre spaces for the next performances
Keeping the tickets free or minimum price

Every donation is welcome:
Our Crowdfunding at gofundme
Our Fundraiser at Facebook Fundraiser
And please consider to come and see us performing Our Footsteps Friday 28 June, 20:00 at Ru Paré Community Chris Lebeaustraat 4, Amsterdam

We believe the arts need to engage society; they need to represent today’s turmoil. Moreover, we acknowledge the cathartic function of the arts, and we are aware of arts’ potential as a means of raising awareness. Words, sounds, images need to transcend the fixity of our everyday and provoke the audience into rising above the level of the given to that of the possible. Through this process, the uselessness of borders is made evident, giving way to the human necessity found in peaceful coexistence.
To this end we come together as migrants, political refugees and locals in order to create a performance: an act of theatre, poetry, music, performance art, choreography. And an act of activism, of human and political togetherness. Although most of the participants are not professional artists, their performance attains the level of full artistic dignity. It’s time to stop seeing the migrant as ‘problematic’ or ‘troublesome.’ It’s time to go beyond the politics of social segregation as mass distraction.
Our performance seeks to transcend the political pitfalls of discrimination and hate peculiar to our present and confused world. We want our performance to be a safe haven, a place where diversity is richness and discrimination can only vanish.

Testimonials:
Maria Mavridou (dancer, choreographer): “You were all wonderful!! Very touched to be there”
Tenedle Dimitri Niccolai (composer, musician): “What a beautiful performance, rhythm and emotions in perfect harmony, excellent choreography and acting for a very strong important message”
Herman Pieterson: “It was amazing. Great performance, beautiful scenes just using patterns of movements by the whole cast”

Performers:
Arif Murat Gür, Ayhan Karaağaç, Ayşenur Akın, Elif İleriye Girgin, Erhan Çalıhan, Ersin Adıgül, Farzin Bapiri, Harun Turan,  Hüseyin Aykan, Iris Maria Tsagri, İsmail Atalamış, Karin Schuitema, Levent Girgin, Maral Jefroudi, Mhmod Pozan, Roberto Bacchilega, Rüzgar Gür, Savalan Ghodsi, Sayat Tekir, Sedat Kartal, Souloke Sen, Ufuk Çalımlı, Vasiliki Koutrouli, Yusuf Adam Suali, Zeki Barlin

Directed by Roberto Bacchilega in collaboration with the performers
Theatre Training: Vasiliki Koutrouli
Dramaturgy: Arif Murat Gür
Stage Movement: Ayhan Karaağaç
Project Facilitator: Maral Jefroudi
Sound Design: Levent Girgin
Production Assistant and Videoproduction: Chihiro Geuzenbroek
Promotion and Stage Photography: Unai Risueño
Graphics: Savalan Ghodsi

Contact: AstaroTheatro. Sint Jansstraat 37 Amsterdam.
http://www.astarotheatro.com. Tel. 06 25382491. Email: info@ondaitaliana.org
Facebook-Page

What the funds will be used for:
Travel costs of the performers
Renting rehearsal space
Renting the theatre spaces for the next performances
Keeping the tickets free or minimum price

Our Footsteps at Ru Paré
A Theatre Performance
Migrants’ narratives as artistic affirmation of our human dignity and a call for political awareness

Friday 28 June, 20:00
Ru Paré Community
Chris Lebeaustraat 4, Amsterdam

A project by AstaroTheatro, IIRE and Stichting Vrolijkheid
With the support of Academie voor Theater en Dans

More than 20 migrants/refugees artists or performers in 10 languages. The result of 5 months of playful improvisational rehearsals, where through self-representation, migrants share stories of their journey and living in the Netherlands facing a long lasting uncertainty after having crossed many, colonial, borders.

Our Footsteps has been successfully performed in Theater Perdu and in Academie voor Theater en Dans. Both dates were sold out as a confirmation of the urgency of this kind of theatre. At the moment Our Footsteps is an on-going project, a work in progress constantly reshaping itself to the artistic and social challenges of our times. Did you miss our previous shows? Our Footsteps will be performed again Friday 28 June, 20:00 at Ru Paré Community in Amsterdam.

Performers:
Arif Murat Gür, Ayhan Karaağaç, Ayşenur Akın, Elif İleriye Girgin, Erhan Çalıhan, Ersin Adıgül, Farzin Bapiri, Harun Turan,  Hüseyin Aykan, Iris Maria Tsagri, İsmail Atalamış, Karin Schuitema, Levent Girgin, Maral Jefroudi, Mhmod Pozan, Roberto Bacchilega, Rüzgar Gür, Savalan Ghodsi, Sayat Tekir, Sedat Kartal, Souloke Sen, Ufuk Çalımlı, Vasiliki Koutrouli, Yusuf Adam Suali, Zeki Barlin 

Directed by Roberto Bacchilega in collaboration with the performers
Theatre Training: Vasiliki Koutrouli
Dramaturgy: Arif Murat Gür
Stage Movement: Ayhan Karaağaç
Project Facilitator: Maral Jefroudi
Sound Design: Levent Girgin
Production Assistant and Videoproduction: Chihiro Geuzenbroek
Promotion and Stage Photography: Unai Risueño
Graphics: Savalan Ghodsi

Info & Tickets at Ru Paré

Our Footsteps
A Theatre Performance
Migrants’ narratives as artistic affirmation of our human dignity and a call for political awareness

A project by AstaroTheatro, IIRE and Stichting Vrolijkheid
With the support of Academie voor Theater en Dans

Pictures by Unai Risueño

More than 20 migrants/refugees artists or performers in 10 languages. The result of 5 months of playful improvisational rehearsals, where through self-representation, migrants share stories of their journey and living in the Netherlands facing a long lasting uncertainty after having crossed many, colonial, borders.

Our Footsteps has been successfully performed in Theater Perdu, in Academie voor Theater en Dans and in Ru Paré in Amsterdam. All three dates were sold out as a confirmation of the urgency of this kind of theatre. At the moment Our Footsteps is an on-going project, a work in progress constantly reshaping itself to the artistic and social challenges of our times. 

We believe the arts need to engage society; they need to represent today’s turmoil. Moreover, we acknowledge the cathartic function of the arts, and we are aware of arts’ potential as a means of raising awareness. Words, sounds, images need to transcend the fixity of our everyday and provoke the audience into rising above the level of the given to that of the possible. Through this process, the uselessness of borders is made evident, giving way to the human necessity found in peaceful coexistence.
To this end we come together as migrants, political refugees and locals in order to create a performance: an act of theatre, poetry, music, performance art, choreography. And an act of activism, of human and political togetherness. Although most of the participants are not professional artists, their performance attains the level of full artistic dignity. It’s time to stop seeing the migrant as ‘problematic’ or ‘troublesome.’ It’s time to go beyond the politics of social segregation as mass distraction.
Our performance seeks to transcend the political pitfalls of discrimination and hate peculiar to our present and confused world. We want our performance to be a safe haven, a place where diversity is richness and discrimination can only vanish.

Testimonials:
Maria Mavridou (dancer, choreographer): “You were all wonderful!! Very touched to be there”
Tenedle Dimitri Niccolai (composer, musician): “What a beautiful performance, rhythm and emotions in perfect harmony, excellent choreography and acting for a very strong important message”
Herman Pieterson: “It was amazing. Great performance, beautiful scenes just using patterns of movements by the whole cast”

Performers:
Arif Murat Gür, Ayhan Karaağaç, Ayşenur Akın, Elif İleriye Girgin, Erhan Çalıhan, Ersin Adıgül, Farzin Bapiri, Harun Turan,  Hüseyin Aykan, Iris Maria Tsagri, İsmail Atalamış, Karin Schuitema, Levent Girgin, Maral Jefroudi, Mhmod Pozan, Roberto Bacchilega, Rüzgar Gür, Savalan Ghodsi, Sayat Tekir, Sedat Kartal, Souloke Sen, Ufuk Çalımlı, Vasiliki Koutrouli, Yusuf Adam Suali, Zeki Barlin 

Directed by Roberto Bacchilega in collaboration with the performers
Theatre Training: Vasiliki Koutrouli
Dramaturgy: Arif Murat Gür
Stage Movement: Ayhan Karaağaç
Project Facilitator: Maral Jefroudi
Sound Design: Levent Girgin
Production Assistant and Videoproduction: Chihiro Geuzenbroek
Promotion and Stage Photography: Unai Risueño
Graphics: Savalan Ghodsi

Contact: AstaroTheatro. Sint Jansstraat 37 Amsterdam.
http://www.astarotheatro.com. Tel. 06 25382491. Email: info@ondaitaliana.org
Facebook-Page

AstaroTheatro hosts the screening of Paese Nostro (in Italian)
Sunday 23 June, 20:00

ZaLab presenta
PAESE NOSTRO
Il film che avremmo voluto mostrarvi
di Michele Aiello, Matteo Calore, Stefano Collizzolli, Andrea Segre, Sara Zavarise

 Un film collettivo sull’Italia dell’accoglienza diffusa, realizzato dagli autori ZaLab nel 2016 prodotto dal Ministero degli Interni ma mai distribuito

 In Italia esiste un mondo che sta aiutando la crescita del Paese, è quello degli operatori e mediatori dei progetti di accoglienza della rete SPRAR, un sistema pubblico basato sulla sinergia tra Comuni, Ministero degli Interni e associazioni. ZaLab ha voluto raccontare questo mondo, seguendo le vite, i pensieri, i sogni, le fatiche di chi ogni giorno lavora nella costruzione di un futuro complesso e necessario.
L’idea è stata proposta nel 2016 ad un bando del fondo FAMI gestito dal Ministero degli Interni. Il bando è stato vinto e il film è stato fatto. Poi però non è mai uscito, perché il Ministero, proprietario dei diritti del film, l’ha chiuso in un cassetto. Sia con Marco Minniti Ministro, sia ora con Matteo Salvini.
Ci sembra un grande errore tenere nascosto il racconto di questa Italia, ancora più oggi che sta subendo misure e voci di isolamento e segregazione.
ZaLab avrebbe voluto che Paese Nostrofosse mostrato sin dalla sua finalizzazione, a inizi 2017. Non è stato possibile. Ancora oggi non potremmo farlo, invece lo mostriamo.
Mettiamo gratuitamente a disposizione di tutti il film che qualcuno vorrebbe non farvi vedere.

Our Footsteps
A Theatre Performance
Migrants’ narratives as artistic affirmation of our human dignity and a call for political awareness

Did you miss our sold out premiere? Here we perform again!
Saturday 25 May, 20:00
Academie voor Theater en Dans Jodenbreestraat 3, Amsterdam