Refugees will take part in the University of Valencia Erasmus Scene project

The upcoming performance by the University of Valencia Erasmus Scene will include refugees in the cast. On the 20th of October La Nau hosted the meeting for those in charge of the University theatre project and the CEAR delegation from the Valencia Community.

This activity was made possible thanks to the recognition of Erasmus Scene (with headquarters at the University of Valencia) in the latest call for grants from the EU Erasmus+ Programme. In addition to this, the Erasmus+ Scene Network, led from Valencia by the UV General Foundation, will be able to be carried out at the Universities of Padua (Italy) and Marburg (Germany), partners in the project.

Through this cooperation between the University of Valencia and CEAR, an entity which has recently signed a cooperation agreement with the UV, a group of refugees will take part as actors in the Erasmus Scene this academic year. Starting in November, they will join the theatre workshop with the participation by UV students and Erasmus students who have been selected. The Erasmus Scene group this year will culminate their training with a performance that will be held in different places. It will include ‘The Small Europes’ tour, which will visit several locations in Valencia next summer.

Thanks to this European grant, the Erasmus Scene group will be the most diverse so far. Previously, the group was made up of Erasmus students and UV students, but this year refugees and immigrants will participate. All participants will learn languages using theatre as a vehicle of exchange. This will also extend to Germany and Italy.

The meeting was attended by: the Vice Principal for Culture and Equality of the University of Valencia, Antonio Ariño; the head of CEAR Valencia Jaume Durà; the manager of the UV General Foundation, Crisóbal Suria; two Erasmus Scene coordinators, Daniel Tormo and Anna Marí from the CRIT Theatre Company in Valencia; and Luisa Frobel, from the University of Marburg.
In 2011, the year of its creation, the Erasmus Scene was awarded with the European Charlemagne Youth Prize for fostering a shared feeling of European identity through theatre.

Erasmus Scene, in Padua

The European project Erasmus+ Scene Network, led from Valencia by the UV General Foundation involves meetings with the three partners: the University of Marburg, the University of Padua and the University of Valencia Erasmus Scene. All made the most of this year not only regarding the creative potential of the Erasmus community and the local students, but also, for the first time, refugees.

The coordinating team from Valencia travelled to Padua on the 23rd and 24th of October to prepare for the academic year. They addressed matters of operation and management. In addition, an open house day was held to introduce the theatre project to the local university community. In July, a meeting took place in Marburg with the same purpose.

The Erasmus+ Scene Network was the EU project that received the highest score out of those submitted in the 2016 Spanish call. The uniqueness of the project lies in the opportunity to foster international exchange through the performing arts and the ability to export the Erasmus Scene model to other countries where it has already been implemented.