The ArtsBridge International Exchange is a partnership between two Deaf and hearing visual theatre companies, one based in South Africa (FTH:K)and the other in America (Wings). July 2011 saw the South African team going over to Washington, DC to co-devise and participate in a three-week skills exchange with the American team, co-creating a short work-in-progress at the end of their time together. The second phase will see the Wings Company coming out to South Africa to present a double-bill of one of their productions with an FTH:K work, touring the country to theatres, schools and institutions with a performance and education programme.
The Exchange has the long-term goals of bringing together members of the Deaf and hearing communities in South Africa and America, as well as setting up a creative partnership between the National Arts Festival in South Africa and QuestFest in the US. Added to this is an educational component brought on board through Gallaudet University - the leaders in Deaf education internationally. Specifically, the exchange looks to investigate visual theatre as a means to promote English literacy.
Check out these clips from the showcase in DC:
Timeframes:
9 Dec '10 - 7 Jan '11: Project set up & development