9th International Meetings of Young Theatre

24th - 27th February 2005

Window - in Polish 'okno' - is for us a symbol on the unique magic space of passage that helps us to observe the external world, and at the same time invites some light into an intimate home space, allowing us to see better our own safe refuge, the shelter we hide in from this world. That's why for several year already we have been trying to organise in Kana the Young Theatre Meetings - an event providing the opportunity to gain more knowledge about the world and to see more clearly our condition.

We have always tried to open our 'window' to integrate young artists, to give a chance for encounter of various forms of theatrical and semi-theatrical expression. Starting form presentation of young theatrical groups, we moved into the formula of showing the young theatre in relation with other branches of art. Last year we studied dependencies and differences between theatre and art of performance, and, in previous years, dance and hip-hop culture. Following the researchers of border zones, we enter the areas where people's of theatre sensitivity intermingles with the one of other artists. This year we want to focus especially on those disciplines of art that take advantage of modern technology. However, it does not mean that we will limit theatrical presentations speaking in their own language about questions important to their authors.

MULTIMEDIA and ANTI-CONSUMPTIONISM are the topics accompanying this year edition of the festival. The first one provokes to take a close look at creative possibilities of modern multimedia techniques, especially in performative, contemporary musical improvisation and photography. We are equally interested in the range of used methods and functions they play in stage actions as well as in their impact on theatre, that for centuries managed to do without them.

We used new and trendy term 'anti-consumptionism' to define a phenomenon of protest against domination of consumption-based model of society. While discussing this subject in our opinion it is important to ask both what causes of delusive escape to 'the paradise of consumption' in times of crisis of religion and relativism of values, as well as whether we have at our disposal necessary selection filters to choose wisely. We hope that reason and common sense is enough.

For the first time we have a honour and pleasure to co-operate with such a big number of institutions and organisations, both local, and foreign. Together with the Stopklatka, we will be able to present, three presentations of specially selected films that will certainly cast some light on origins and contemporary forms of rebellion against corporational mechanisms. Musical part of the festival's program has been shaped by the MUSICA GENERA label, providing organisational help and propositions. For the second time we will have the opportunity to present German performances from two theatrical schools and the youth theatre of the Berlin-based Volksbühne. Co-operation with important centre of intermedia arts Fylkingen from Stockholm resulted in interesting propositions of Scandinavian artists in the field if text-sound compositions, musical performance and dance theatre.

We are glad that our idea of Meeting, initially realised on one small stage by a few local theatrical groups, has been adopted by so many new partners of ours, sometimes coming from afar.

We are opening the ninth edition of the OKNO festival hoping that we will be able to touch real particle of truth about a human condition in the beginning of the new millenium. We trust that the energy of meetings will be shared with all spectators and will be present in them not only in the special 'holy time' of the festival. We invite you to spend a couple of long February afternoons, evenings and nights together with us.

Zygmunt Duczyński
Janusz Turkowski
Teatr Kana