Small Size, Performing Arts for Early Years

Small size, performing arts for early years (SSPAfEY) has turned its attention to children aged 0-6 years, a real “current non-audience”, especially thinking of children under 36 months. The project was conceived and implemented after three other projects aimed at creating a network dedicated to performing arts and early childhood: Small size (2005-2006), Small size, big citizens (2009-2014), Small size, the net (2006-2009).

The partnership that carried it out is a solid and balanced one, made of theatres, institutions and artists who have been building a continuous, deep artistic relationship with early childhood, willing to bring their specific know-how to the research. A partnership spread throughout Europe: 17 partners from 15 European countries (Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Poland, Romania, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and United Kingdom) with different cultural and social identities, different educational models for early childhood, different ways of supporting artistic production. European cooperation has given the partners, all of whom are widely recognised by national, regional and local institutions in their countries, a valuable opportunity to share know-how that can be transferred in daily artistic work, and to improve institutional acknowledgement, with the consequent increase in resources and opportunities. At the same time, the strength of a project like SSPAfEY, that intertwined artistic research aimed at a specific segment of the European population with concrete cooperation methods, originates in the solidity of territorial institutional relations, which allow the partners to want and be able to invest in research and development.

Small size projects, focused first on the creation, then on the rooting and finally on the enlargement of a Network for performing arts for early childhood in Europe and in the world, allowed the Network to reach 72 members in 30 countries, and to continue to grow self-reliantly.

SSPAfEY culminated in the final event held in Galway (Ireland) 1-4 February 2018. More than 130 among artists, technicians and professionals belonging to all partner organisations were able to share the 15 productions created by the partners within the co-production process Wide Eyes, as well as workshops, conversations and other moments of reflection with the audience of Galway and with many other delegates, and had as well the opportunity to live directly a valuable encounter.

In addition, from October 2014 to September 2018, 48 new theatre and dance productions were set up during the project, as well as 45 festivals of performing arts for early childhood (or 0-6 sections in theatre festivals for children and young people), 9 showcases and 11 Mentoring projects with theatres and artists outside the partnership.
Every year, in the last weekend of January, partners and Network members planned Small size days (“The arts are not a matter of age but of curiosity”): an event taking place at the same time in many places around the world. An event that grew year by year, and that in January 2018 presented 160 activities in 20 countries over the three days. This event, born within the project, will be carried on by the Network from 2019.

The project was also accompanied and enriched by many common activities such as the 6 Common Meetings and 4 Artistic Directors Meetings, dissemination and documentation activities.

Finally, we believe that it should be highlighted how the project, has encouraged a wide mobility of artists, with almost 800 journeys accounted for. (Source: EC)

Ljubljana Puppet Theatre

(Partner)

All projects of Slovenian producer

Foreign producers in the supported project

La Baracca società cooperativa sociale ONLUS (leader)

Italy (EU)
Asociación Educativa (partner)

Spain (EU)
Baboro Galway International Children’s Festival Limited (partner)

Ireland (EU)
Centrum Sztuki Dziecka W Poznaniu (partner)

Poland (EU)
Commune De Limoges (partner)

France (EU)
Helios 6 live art produktion ev (partner)

Germany (EU)
Kolibri Gyermek (partner)

Hungary (EU)
Kuukulkurit Ry (partner)

Finland (EU)
O’navio Theatre (partner)

France (EU)
Polka Childrens Theatre Limited (partner)

United Kingdom (EU)
Teater Tre Stockholm Ekonomisk Förening (partner)

Sweden (EU)
Teaterværkstedet Madam Bach (partner)

Denmark (EU)
Teatro Paraíso Sal (partner)

Spain (EU)
Teatrul Ion Creanga (partner)

Romania (EU)
Théâtre de La Guimbarde (partner)

Belgium (EU)
Toihaus Theater (partner)

Austria (EU)

Funded projects

Shadow Pandemic: Hidden Voices

Open House Europe (OHEu)

Third Stage

VERSOPOLIS – WHERE POETRY LIVES

Uncomfortable Beings, Azra, Best Imaginary Friends Forever

LINA - Learn, Interact, and Network in Architecture

Reactivating unused urban spaces through architecture and arts (ReCITYing)

Art Nouveau: a new EUtopia

Creative Industries Development Centre (KUL)

Web 3.0 Accelerator for Sustainable Cultural Tourism (Web3Tour)

Studiotopia: Enter the Symbiocene with Arts and Science (Studiotopia 2)

Bio Awakening - developing bio-art practices in Western Balkan

TestArt

GREENSTAGE

Climate Art Fusion Caravane (CARAVANE)

Connecting Emerging Literary Artists (CELA)

Cultural BEES

Transmedia stories of insularity (TRAST)

Female Digital Creativity (FLUX)

Planet Hope (New European Fiction) (PH)

More than a Story (MTaS)

Our Little Library: Through literary bridges to reading adventures (OLLLB)

Connected with Books (CWB)

Operation Nova

Moving Balkans

Exploring Expanded Publishing: EX-Pub

Thinking Publishing (ThinkPub)

Novel Europe (NovelEU)

REVIVE

Temporama: Mini Slate 2023

Studi Virc: Mini Slate 2023

The 10th and 11th edition of FeKK - Ljubljana Short Film Festival

The 20th and 21st Kino Otok - Isola Cinema International Film Festival

20. and 21. ANIMATEKA International animated film festival

Film in Hospital 2.0

EU Youth Cinema: Green Deal 2024-2026

Cinema without barriers (CWB)

Literary Agent Platform: Capacity building (LAP CB)

Tramal Films Mini Slate 22 (TFMini22)

Vertigo Slate 2022: Chestnuts, Memory of Autumn Mists, OHO, Splashing around

Staragara slate 22

Our Little Library: Literary exchanges

Testing Ground (TestG)

Better Live

Variola - Dark Spring TV series

SEMA

Paradiso

Leave the door open

The Big Green

The Long Way Down

New approaches for local media (NEWLOCAL)

Life Long Burning – Futures Lost and Found (LLB3)

Time For Live Art (LIVETIME)

Our Little Library: Literary Exchanges

Women Power in Comics (WOMCOM)

Movement, Digital Intelligence and Interactive Audience (MODINA)

Fortissimo. An interactive digital tool that brings kids closer to classical music (FF)

Spring Cleaning

Animation Festival Network

CulturalDeTour - Sustainable Cultural Tourism by Design Driven Innovation

Building the future of democracy through art, science and technology (EUDigitalDeal)

The Museum of the Commons. Towards a Healthier Arts Ecosystem (MoC)

ACT: Art, Climate, Transition

Baths, gothic churches and miners’ houses

Fake Lies

THE FILM CORNER RELOADED - A CULTURAL APPROACH

CINEMINI EUROPE

FC Freedom

Body

Movies in Motion

Voix de la Poesie Europeenne

Trust me, I'm an artist

The Faces Behind the Nose - Promoting Hospital Clowning as a Recognized Genre of Performing Arts

SYMBOLS - Culture of Death& Cultural Life: New audiences and creations around European Cemeteries!

SWICH - Sharing a World of Inclusion, Creativity and Heritage

SPECTRUM 14|15

Small Size, Performing Arts for Early Years

Performing the Museum

Masters & Servers: Networked Culture in the Post-Digital Age