Urban Performing Arts
The main objective is to give the participants tools to understand the different aspects of artistic creation and scenic art in public spaces. Urban Performing Arts is a mostly practical course for which attendance is required each day, to realize a final live and direct street performance.
The course has two branches:
- Propaedeutics: Comediants inventors of a new language: daily sessions of 1 1/2 hours. Analysis of the scenic arts used from Comediants in their urban and outdoor shows and of urban artistic forms developed from other artists and contemporary companies. We will analyse the value of the artistic utilization of the public space, as àgora, as a space of contact, coexistence, integration; the structure of some collective acts on open-air, meetings, mass manifestation that recently are appearing all over the world and its relationship with the festive drama, the use of plasticity elements, music, scenography, song, rituals, as elements of social cohesion, sharing and collective participation.
- Process of creation of an urban Performance: Looking for Peace Daily sessions of 2 hours of collective physical work with a final performance to present in an urban space.
Looking for Peace: “Wars begin at the mind of men and it is at the mind of men that the defense of peace is built - it ‘s the preamble to the constitution of UNESCO. Why not try to enclose in our minds a solution that does not follow the brutal and banal of more bombs and more deaths?” (Letters against the war, by Tiziano Terzani)
Courses generally have little or no prerequisite knowledge required for a given topic, however if students face any doubts, we recommend they contact course professors to clarify.
Week | Contents | Teaching/learning activities |
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1 |
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Actoral training: actions, scenes, movement, voice and song. |
2 |
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3 |
Propaedeutics: Participation and discussion (25%). |
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From Monday to Friday.
From 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Propaedeutics: Participation and discussion (25%).
Homework (Deadline: 31/07/2025): Description and exposition, minimum two pages with text, illustrations, and links, of an artistic event, show, festivity, or performance that the student has seen and that made a big impression on them, or that they know or have heard about. The event should represent a special, spectacular artistic intervention and transformation of an urban space, through music, colors, customs, public participation, dance, contents, elements, etc.
Process of creation of the Urban performance: Attendance and participation is required each day of the course (75%).
- Amades, Joan. (1982). Costumari català, el curs de l'any. Barcelona: Salvat Editores/Edicions 62.
- Bressanello, Alessandro. (2010). Carnival in the Modern Age. 30 Years of Carnival in Venice 1980-2000. (Studio LT2., pàg 19 a 33 i 260 a 262).
- Comediants. (1987). Comediantes, 15 años, Madrid: El Público, Centro de Documentación Teatral, Institut del Teatre de Barcelona.
- Fàbregas, Xavier. (1979). Tradicions, mites i creences dels catalans: La pervivència de la Catalunya ancestral. Barcelona: Edicions 62.
- Feierabend, Peter. (2013). Bauhaus. Ed. Jeannine Fiedler.
- Garcia, Cristina. (1993). España fiestas y ritos. Madrid: Lunwerg Editores.
- Guillén, Juan José. (1998). Artefactes parateatrals. Institut del Teatre: Diputació de Barcelona.
- Holme, Bryan. (1988). Princely Feasts and Festivals. Thames and Hudson.
- Madeinusa, Miralda. Catàleg de l’exposició al MACBA (oct.2016-Abril 2017).
- Maicas, Moisès. "La màgia del foc i el teatre al carrer", Les mil cares del foc, pp. 220-237. Generalitat de Catanunya. Departament de Presidència. ("The magic of fire and Street theatre", pp. 386-390).
- Monleón, José y Di Giammarco, Rodolfo y Scaparro Maurizio. (2007). Il mondo della luna. pp. 31-41. Edizioni Spartaco.
- Pallarés, Aida and Pérez, Manuel. (2017). El Carrer és nostre, Raig Verd Editorial.
- Rumbo, Albert. (2001). Patum! Barcelona: Amalgama Edicions.
- Villanova, Manuel Vicent. La Escena callejera 1960-1984. Ed. Xarxa Teatre S.L. Colecció fiestacultura.
- Edited by David George, John London (1996). Contemporary Catalan Theatre.
- Royal de Luxe 1993-2001 (2002).Edition Actes Sud, Le Mejan.
- Le Théatre du Feu.(2002). Actes Sud.
- Gaber, Floriane/ Mirales Marc/Bureau,Marc.(2010). Plasticiens Volants
- Barbany Damià. (2015). Castell i Planas constructors d’escenografies. Arola Editors.
- Celedón Bañados,Pedro (2018), Insurgentes Norte/Sur, teatralidades entre milenios. Editorial cuatro vientos
- Història d’una Història (2022). Comediants .Edicions Eixample
- Tiziano Terzani (2002). Letters against the war
Universal Declaration of Human Rights - Website Comediants
- EL ÁRBOL DE LA MEMORIA - Comediants. (2011, 1 marzo). [Vídeo]. YouTube.
- COMEDIANTS - ARBRE DE LA MEMORIA. (2013, 28 mayo). [Vídeo]. YouTube.
- COMEDIANTS - DIMONIS TAIWAN 2006. (2010, 11 mayo). [Vídeo]. YouTube.
- COMEDIANTS - ELOGIO DE LA LOCURA 2011. (2011, 1 julio). [Vídeo]. YouTube.
Participants must bring comfortable clothes and shoes for physical exercises.
White clothes and black shoes for the performance (shirt/skirts/trousers/leggings...).
The course is addressed to everybody who is interested to:
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An experience of artistic communication in urban spaces.
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A search for historical and ethnological materials recovered from popular tradition.
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The process of a creation of urban dramaturgy with a final performance to present in an urban space
Jaume Bernadet Munnè is an actor, script writer, writer of the screenplay, creative artistic director specialized in the direction of shows with collective participation. He has been leading, directing and often presenting as Master of Ceremonies various artistic activities of Comediants all over the world: theatre, audiovisual works, movies, TV, macro shows and special events like the closing ceremony of the Olympic Games of Barcelona ' 92. He has realized different pedagogic projects to transmit the unique artistic language invented by Comediants, with conferences, international workshops, artistic residences and performances such as the International Street Theater Course for FAI AR (Formation Avancée Itinerant des Arts de la Rue Marseille, France).
Rita Kuan (Jin Hua) is a theatre artist: actress, assistant direction, creation and artistic production, ideation, design and realization of exhibitions, books, objects, story boards for shows and other theatrical events. She studied up until the fifth year of architecture in Florence. Since 1979 she ‘s a member of the theatre group “Comediants“, participating creatively to all their artistic productions: theatre, movies, TV, macro shows and special events like the closing ceremony of the Olympic Games of Barcelona ' 92, different pedagogic activities to transmit the special artistic language invented by Comediants with international workshops, artistic residences, performances like “Architecture and ephemeral spaces”, for ELISAVA and UPC of Barcelona.