ROOTS & ROUTES is an international network for the promotion of cultural and social diversity in contemporary performing arts and media. ROOTS & ROUTES members offer educational activities, mobility programmes and stage performances for young music, dance and media talents in 10+ European countries: Arts and media as tools for integration in the social and cultural life and as first step into an artistic career.
ROOTS & ROUTES Trailer
ROOTS & ROUTES was developed as a concept to involve young talents from multicultural neighbourhoods at the EU Cultural Capital activities in Rotterdam 2001. Following the success in Rotterdam, further projects were organised in major Dutch cities. The common principle: To use young artists' diverse cultural backgrounds – “ROOTS” – and their creative expressions to show them “ROUTES” that lead to the established culture scene.
The established relations lead to a first transnational project in 2005, where enthusiastic partners started organising cultural exchanges, artistic residencies and performances at major festivals, such as Sziget (Budapest), Fabbrica Europa (Florence), Summerjam (Cologne) or Hipnotik (Barcelona).
After several international projects – from talent development to a multilingual web video platform, from cultural peer education to performing art stage productions – in 2008 the network was formalized with the founding of the ROOTS & ROUTES International Association.
ROOTS & ROUTES International Association
International ROOTS & ROUTES activities:
EUtropia is a culture cooperation project with partners in 9 EU countries running from 2011 till 2013. The project’s aim is the collective creation of a multidisciplinary performance that journeys around Europe and collects new stimuli and thus widen the horizon of artistic expression. 250 young artists from 9 European countries collaborate by posing an open dialogue in performing, visual and audiovisual arts.
ART'n'GO - New routes to intercultural creativity gave young artists from 10 EU countries the opportunity to develop sustainable productions and present them in mainstream festivals in 2011, such as Fabbrica Europa Festival in Florence or sziget Festival in Budapest.
ROOTS & ROUTES ACADEMY projects train young talents to become Junior Coaches. ROOTS & ROUTES Junior Coaches are young dance, music and media talents who are educated to coach other students of similar or younger age. The Academy seminars contain creative, cultural, social and entrepreneurship content.
The ROOTS & ROUTES Experience 2011 was a youth exchange project for 50 young artists from 9 European countries. They jontly created an interdisciplinary stage show with music, dance, media elements, acrobatics, theatre and slam poetry. The show premiered at LVR Tag der Begegnung Festival in Xanten and at Sommerblut Festival in Cologne.
National
ROOTS & ROUTES SUMMERSCOOL projects empower creative youths in approaching their professional career: Motivated urban talents are able to follow training modules in diverse urban music and dance styles, theory and practice of the creative industry and light, sound and media technique.
Local
ROOTS & ROUTES STEP1 projects are short time workshops for urban music, dance and media talents where they can cooperate with likeminded youth, learn from professional artists and jointly create a multidisciplinary stage performance.
International ROOTS & ROUTES performances:
EUtropia @ Arkadas Theater 2012, Cologne, Germany
Art'n'Go @ sziget Festival 2011 - Budapest, Hungary
Funking Circus @ Under One Sky Festival 2011 - London, UK
Jam Karet @ Gamescome 2011 - Cologne, Germany
Art'n'Go @ Fabbrica Europa Festival 2011 - Florence, Italy
Art'n'Go @ Mercat de Musica Viva 2010 - Vic, Spain
R&R Experience 2010 - Rotterdam, The Netherlands
ROOTS & ROUTES @ tuning into diversity conference 2010 - Budapest, Hungary
R&R Experience 2009 - Rotterdam, The Netherlands
R&R A_Maze @ Fabbrica Europa Festival 2008 - Florence, Italy
R&R Experience 2008 - Cologne, Germany
ROOTS & ROUTES @ Cultural Sunday 2008 - Utrecht, The Netherlands
ROOTS & ROUTES @ Meet the Streets Festival 2007, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
ROOTS & ROUTES @ Summer Jam Festival 2006 – Cologne, Germany
