PLAY, Musical Theater Intensive For Internally Displaced Teens
From February 9th to 11th, 2024, a theater and music intensive for internally displaced teens took place in Lviv.
The program was designed to give participants the chance to explore various forms of creative expression and to support their healing and recovery through art. Under the guidance of our expert mentors, the teens gained new skills in acting, movement, and music, forged new connections, and had the opportunity to physically and emotionally recharge and find distraction from their daily challenges.
As part of the project, we incorporated improvisational techniques such as:
- Acting – to relieve emotional tension, release difficult emotions, develop empathy, and improve communication and teamwork within the group.
- Music – to enhance the ability to listen to oneself and others, foster a sense of belonging to something larger, and create unity through synchronization.
During the training, the mentors and participants collaboratively created a performative piece, which was showcased in an open performance on February 11th at the Hnat Khotkevych Palace of Culture.
Team
The curator of the project program and one of the leading mentors was Natalia Shapovalova (Kharkiv/Lviv) – an actress, puppeteer, lecturer at the Kharkiv National University of Arts named after I.P. Kotlyarevsky, mentor in acting at the Creative School What IF (Lviv), participant in international theater projects, festivals, and scientific conferences in Poland, Italy, Croatia, Iran, and Sweden.
She is a laureate of the Gaude Polonia scholarship (2020) from the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage of the Republic of Poland, which allowed her to undergo training at the Warsaw Theater Academy named after A. Zelwerowicz, branch in Białystok under the guidance of Professor Marek Waszkiel. With eight years of experience working with children and teenagers as a lecturer in theater disciplines, director, and organizer of active leisure activities.
Yaroslav Voitenko (Kharkiv/Lviv) is an actor and theater teacher at the Children’s Art School No. 3 in Kharkiv. He is also a mentor in acting at the Creative School What IF in Lviv. Yaroslav collaborates with the A3 Theater in Poland and has worked as an actor at the BRAMA Theater in Poland and the ARABESKY Theater in Kharkiv.
He has experience in organizing and conducting theater festivals, creative events, and productions. Yaroslav has participated in international festivals and cultural exchanges in Italy, Lithuania, Germany, Poland, and Romania.
Grigoriy Semenchuk (Lviv) is a poet, musician, and cultural activist. He is the chairman of the NGO “Art Council ‘Dialogue’.” Grigoriy is a curator and producer of many artistic projects and the director of the “Month of Authorial Readings in Lviv” festival.
He is the author of poetry collections such as “Internal Jihad” (Meridian Czernowitz Publishing, 2012), “MORE of Poems and Songs” (Old Lion Publishing House, 2015), and “In Accordance with the Original” (Lyuta Sprava Publishing, 2021). He is the editor of the anthology of contemporary Ukrainian poetry “Letters from Ukraine” (Art Council “Dialogue,” 2016) and a co-editor of the anthology “AUUA” (Krok Publishing House, 2012).
Grigoriy has participated in numerous literary and music festivals in Ukraine, Germany, Poland, Slovakia, France, the Czech Republic, Romania, and the UK. He is a co-author of the Ukrainian-German poetic-musical group “LANDSCHAFT” and the author of the solo music project “BRAT.” He is also a member of the music-poetic project “Ukrainian Songs of Love and Hate.”
The project was organized by the Public Organization “ART DOT” (Kharkiv, Ukraine) in partnership with the Hnat Khotkevych Palace of Culture, and financially supported by the Culture Helps/Культура допомагає Program implemented by Інша Освіта in collaboration with Zusa with the support of the European Union.
Views and opinions expressed belong solely to the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). Neither the European Union nor EACEA can be held responsible for them.
Feedback from participants
Svitlana Ignatyeiva, 16 years old
The project is so cool, even though it’s short, it really brings out the best in people (or maybe it just depends on the team you work with?). It helps you try acting skills and realize it’s not so scary. You can find new friends there, learn new skills, and have a great and productive time. Thank you to everyone who worked on the project!! You guys are awesome!!!! ✨️♡
Anna Sinenko, 13 years old
The project is really cool, it helps overcome fears, become more open, and find new friends. The atmosphere, vibe, and comfort here are amazing. Thank you for organizing such projects. 🥰💋
Katerina Garan, 12 years old
Wow, I was just filled with adrenaline after this intensive, and the company was so awesome. It was so great when we sat down and shared our reflections, almost everyone talked about their mistakes, and only a couple of people said we shouldn’t talk about them because others didn’t know, we shouldn’t criticize ourselves, and it will really help me in life) Thank you to everyone for the amazing photos, for the great music, and to Natali and Yaroslav and the people who made this project happen, you’re all sunshine)
Vladyslav Dmytruk, 16 years old
Thank you very much for creating such interesting projects for Ukrainian teenagers! Thanks to people like you, children reach great creative heights!
Yulia Stepanova, 13 years old
I want to start by saying that everyone was very joyful and cheerful, considering that there is currently a war going on and many people are experiencing its consequences. Despite this, our team created a really cool performance, thanks to all of us, because if any of us were missing, it would have been different.
We all come from different parts of Ukraine, so it’s really cool that everything worked out for us. We became friends, and I think everyone will have positive memories of this performance. ✨️
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