This latest CMT mission in Guinea Bissau had two main objectives: to continue and conclude the training work that has been developed since the beginning of the Ur_Gente project (we had been in Guinea in January, June and October 2023 and carried out several online mentoring sessions); to participate in the Festival Djintis, contributing to the diversity and quality of the artistic programming.
The re-qualification of the warehouse where we had worked in June 2023 was an immense challenge and when we arrived, the installation of sound and light equipment was being completed, as well as the training of technicians in these areas. Ur_Gente now has a House: it is beautiful, functional, distinct and it was exciting to see it “being born” and welcoming, vibrantly, the multiple “colors” and “voices” of the Festival Djintis. Inhabiting it with the Conferência dos Pássaros and Kaminhu Lundju was certainly a highlight of the entire training journey, but also of the Festival itself. These are creations that resulted from previous training actions and that could now be presented with much more elaborate technical conditions than those of the initial presentations. The diversity and artistic quality of Djintis was very high and brought to Bissau a set of proposals from various countries and “artistic territories”, embodying to the words “performing arts” and “transdisciplinary” and a innovative vision, aware of the geography, history and Ur-Gente´s transformative potential in Guinean cultural life. The theme of this first edition, “Tera” (in Guinea-Bissau Creole, “Terra” in Portuguese), “land where we walk, Earth-planet where we all inhabit, Earth that calls us to a new awareness of care, of relationship with each other” is particularly dear to us. Since NOAH. Djintis was a “transformative event” and the Conferência dos Pássaros and Kaminhu Lundju performances were also relevant because they allowed to “hear the voices” of the young Guineans with whom we have worked in recent months on performative, scenography and video issues. This sense of continuity and epilogue, being able to deepen ideas, having conditions and contexts that dignify effort, work and talent are essential not only for a full training experience but also for the motivation and continued involvement of these people in future challenges.
CMT’s participation in the Festival also included a musical intervention in a kindergarten accompanied by a training/awareness-raising action for educators, preceded and followed by training for some of the Ur_Gente trainees. In the same kindergarten there was a presentation of one of the pieces from the CMT repertoire, PaPI-Opus 8, followed by a session of stories told by a Guinean artist. The intersection of artistic languages and cultural “backgrounds” is one of the most interesting features of the Festival’s programming and was present throughout the event. CMT’s participation also included the presentation of Dooo Ba Wooo at Centro Cultural Português, which was followed by a presentation by Grupo de Teatro do Oprimido which included some of the trainees who participated in the Conferência dos Pássaros and Kaminhu Lundju . In addition to the children and families, many other trainees with whom we had worked were also present. Once again, and in another way, the idea of “training” was revealed as a process of sharing, of creating worldview, of experience and awareness. Over several years we have been defending the idea of “immersive training”, a complex process that is rooted in the “art experience” (participating, doing, creating, observing), transformative and holistic, which allows the acquisition of artistic, communicational, educational skills and which catalyzes the creation of connections between people. The context of the Festival is an excellent example of how all the wealth that is necessary to “train” artists, educators and technicians can be mobilized and leveraged.
The “reunion”, after several months of online mentoring, always difficult, was, once again, a pleasure. Talent, generosity, energy, desire to learn/discover, empathy are the fertile ground where difficulties are overcome, from which art springs with moving joy and strength. Over the course of just over two years, the Ur_Gente project has already achieved two notable goals: the creation of a “home” and a “community”. Kasa and Djintis. Anywhere in the world this would be remarkable. In Guinea-Bissau this is even more significant. For those who, like us, followed the entire “dream” and the “long path” that followed from the beginning, what happened last week was admirable, amazing and inspiring. May the birds continue to fly. Love is urgent.
The project “Ur-GENTE, Centro de Artes Cénicas Transdisciplinar de Bissau” is supported by PROCULTURA, financed by the European Union, under the management and co-financed by Camões, IP. It is coordinated by ONGD VIDA, and involves the partners GTO Bissau – Grupo de Teatro do Oprimido (Guiné-Bissau), Academia Livre de Artes Integradas do Mindelo (Cabo Verde), and Companhia de Música Teatral (Portugal).
