Irish Partners in Perform Europe Projects 2024 - 2025

Two Irish organisations are partners in 2024 - 2025 Perform Europe touring projects. Perform Europe is a funding scheme for the European performing arts sector. Through its annual open call, Perform Europe supports 42 inclusive, diverse and green touring projects across all 40 Creative Europe countries. With a total Budget of €2.1 million, Perform Europe allocated grants of up to €60,000 to selected projects for 2024 to 2025.

From July 2024 to November 2025 these 42 partnerships involving 196 partners will tour 63 performing arts works across all 40 Creative Europe countries. Performing arts professionals and organisations from all of the Creative Europe countries are represented in the selection. They will test innovative ideas and models for touring, all with one common goal: to redefine how the performing arts can reach audiences in a greener, more inclusive, and more diverse way.

Two Irish organisations are partners in 2024 - 2025 Perform Europe projects - Source Arts Centre Thurles and CoisCéim Dublin.

Chapter 1: Sugar with Irish Partner Source Arts Centre, Thurles

This project suggests a new approach to touring that goes beyond presenting artistic works in different countries. It includes performances in traditional venues, as well as site-specific and community-driven events in open spaces. Combining performances with workshops, ongoing research, and creation processes it aims to give voice and integrate underrepresented cultural groups and diverse audiences.

With ‘Chapter 1: SUGAR’, the first creation within ‘Sugar, Metal, Coal: A trilogy of site relevant extended choreography’, Giulia Vitiello explores the history and social landscape of a sugar factory through the physicality and movements of two performers. This work is inspired by the archives of La Raffinerie in Brussels and is part of a dance development project called ‘dancing from archives’, which focuses on industrial architecture, site-specific creation, and the inclusion of working-class heritage in the performing arts. This proposal aims to develop a language that links dance and documentary incorporating the material it draws from fostering continuous exchange with the communities and spaces involved in its development and presentation.

The Sugar tour will be at the Source Arts Centre, Thurles from 28th February to 1st March, 2025.

Performing Memory with Irish Partner CoisCéim Ireland

The project co-creates and presents local performances of Ukrainian artists - ‘Lost Movement’ by Nana Biakova and ‘Without Name’ by Sasha Kurmaz - in Ukraine, Italy, and Ireland. Ukrainian artists collaborate remotely with local performers, fostering intercultural dialogue on remembering, commemoration, and movement. The project is initiated by a consortium of partners: proto produkciia from Ukraine, Arte Sella from Italy and CoisCéim from Ireland.

Two Ukrainian works will be presented in their local context. Following this, the works will be virtually explored and reinterpreted in Italy and Ireland. Ukrainian artists will engage in online discussions with local artists from two countries. These discussions will focus on the core concepts, allowing for reinterpretation of and adaptation to the specific cultural contexts of Italy and Ireland. The final performances will showcase the artistic exchange and will happen without the physical presence of Ukrainian artists.

This innovative approach eliminates travel, significantly reducing the project’s carbon footprint while increasing accessibility to impactful performances across Europe. The project redefines international collaboration by prioritising local artist integration and developing a replicable model for future artistic exchange.

About Perform Europe

Perform Europe is funded by Creative Europe implemented by a consortium of six organisations: IETM – International network for contemporary performing arts, European Festivals Association (EFA), Circostrada, European Dance Development Network, Pearle Live Performance Europe and IDEA Consult.