International
C:NTACT's working method has aroused major international interest over the last couple of years. The special C:NTACT way is gaining ground both in Europe and across the Arab world.
Our unique ways of creating dialogue and intercultural understanding through the personal story have resulted in international collaborations, e.g. in Latvia, Palestine, and Jordan. In these countries, theater plays and similar projects in the C:NTACT vein are well under way.
C:NTACT's approach that aims to professionalise the participants' ability to relate their own lives and personal stories through theatre, film, radio, tv, and the written media is widely recognised as an ideal way of creating understanding and easing difficult cultural tensions.
The national Latvian theater, Dailes Theater in Riga,
has already staged their second show produced by the
Latvian C:NTACT, K:NTAKTS.LV. Additionally, the Al-Qasaba Theater
in Ramallah, Palestine, staged their first major C:NTACT
project in 2009.
Ramallah has one of the highest levels of education in the
Middle East. However, it is almost impossible for young
people to find work in Ramallah. This situation generates
large groups of frustrated, radicalised youngsters. Moreover, their
society does not recognise this as a problem. The Al-Qasaba
Theater wants to apply C:NTACT's methods to the Palestinian reality
in order to establish a forum where urgent social issues can
be addressed.
In Jordan, C:NTACT is currently involved in a collaboration with the Zarqa Community Development Committee aiming to stage theater-, radio-, and film projects inside the city's large refugee camp. Current problems in Zarqa include poverty, unemployment, high levels of violence, drug abuse, and widespread gender discrimination.
The main issue in Latvia is that two parallel communities have evolved since the country was occupied by Russia. Today 40 percent of the population are Russians. They have their own schools, bars, and shops, and there is hardly any social interaction between Latvians and Russians. The C:NTACT way is employed to generate greater understanding between the two groups.
All three projects are currently under development and more international cooperations are in the making.
