ATLAS – Performing Arts Training Programme

Four months after the launch of ATLAS, the training journey continues to take shape through encounters between participants, artists and diverse ways of thinking about and practising contemporary performing arts.

Throughout this first phase of the programme, dozens of hours of training have been dedicated to the history and aesthetics of theatre, directing, dramaturgy, scenography and acting. Through a combination of theoretical sessions, practical workshops and intensive laboratories, ATLAS has sought to create a learning environment that brings together critical reflection, experimentation and direct engagement with leading artists and practitioners.

ATLAS has already brought together artists and tutors such as João Brites, Thomas Ostermeier, Suzanne Kennedy, Cristiane Jatahy, Juliana Pinho, José Manuel Castanheira, Tony De Maeyer, Alexandre Pieroni Calado and Tiago de Faria, among other guests who have contributed to a rich and diverse learning journey shaped by a wide range of methodologies, aesthetics and creative approaches.

During this period, the programme offered modules dedicated to Theatricality, the History and Aesthetics of Theatre, Scenography, the Fundamentals of Directing, and Meyerhold’s Biomechanics. Several of these training courses reached full capacity, generating waiting lists and confirming the strong interest in specialised professional development in the performing arts.

More than a series of independent workshops, ATLAS has established itself as an integrated training programme, designed to provide access to knowledge, support the development of artistic trajectories, and connect the Azores with contemporary debates and practices in the performing arts.

By bringing together artists, educators and participants from diverse backgrounds, the programme seeks to create a space for exchange, critical reflection and artistic experimentation, while contributing to the strengthening of the cultural and creative ecosystem of the region.

The second half of the programme will continue this journey with new training opportunities across the areas of Contemporary Directing and Dramaturgy, Visual Composition and Stage Space, Acting Practices, and the POP Laboratories. In doing so, ATLAS reaffirms its commitment to a diversity of approaches, inclusion, and the creation of meaningful opportunities for participants with different backgrounds, experiences and artistic interests.

The ATLAS Journey Continues!

PARTNERS: Carlos Machado Museum, Public Library and Regional Archive of Ponta Delgada, University of the Azores, Academy of Arts of the University of the Azores, Estúdio 13, and Teatro Micaelense.

SUPPORT: Pico do Refúgio – Country Houses, Clínica Humanidades, and the Regional Directorate for Culture (DRAC).

Fully Supported in the Second Semester by PDL26 – Portuguese Capital of Culture.