HCA Festivals: Small Street Performances Across Cultures

Danish and Chinese children reinterpret and transform five of Hans Christian Andersen's fairy tales into small street performances in the streets and squares of downtown Odense. Across language and culture, these young performers handle the tales with care and courage.

At five central locations in Odense city center, fairy tale characters suddenly appear, and within eight minutes, the audience experiences what happens when children from China and Denmark meet, create costumes, and interpret Hans Christian Andersen's immortal fairy tales from a perspective in which they see themselves. Each street performance has a specific theme and scenography and is adapted to our times, where influencers, mobile phones, and a culture of perfection influence children's daily lives. The five small street performances rotate between Vestergade, Kongensgade, Brandts Passage, Flakhaven, and the Fairy Tale Castle in Eventyrhaven.

The street performances are the result of a joint Danish-Chinese collaboration between theater director William Yip from Hong Kong, Torben Iversen, leader of the H.C. Andersen Parade, and Learn For Life, with help from local theater people including Bianca Giese and Tom Due.


Street Theater in a Co-creation Process
Ideas for content and form were developed via Zoom meetings during the spring and form the basis for the script written by Bianca Giese. In August, children and directors meet in Odense, where the children get to know each other, rehearse, and work together on costumes and scenography before performing the street shows a few days later. Community, diversity, togetherness, and intercultural understanding are the core elements behind the street theater project.


Concluding with a Chinese Performance
On Tuesday, there will be a closing event at the Fairy Tale Castle, where William Yip, together with the Chinese children, will perform a special version of 'The Nightingale.' It is not the first time the renowned director William Yip visits the city. For several years, he has performed interpretations of Hans Christian Andersen's fairy tales with Chinese children at the Fairy Tale Castle. William is a passionate advocate for more drama and theater in Chinese schools. He travels across China and around the world to find inspiration for both performances and teaching. Denmark is one of his favorite destinations - not least because of Hans Christian Andersen and Danish children's theater.


The five Hans Christian Andersen fairy tales as street theater:

  1. The Little Girl with the Powerbanks / The Little Match Girl
  2. Clumsy Hans 2.0 / Clumsy Hans
  3. The Snow Queen / The Snow Queen
  4. The CEO’s New Filters / The Emperor’s New Clothes
  5. The Amazing Elina / The Ugly Duckling

Where and When:

August 19 and 20: 3:00 PM. Each performance lasts about eight minutes, after which they rotate between the five locations: Vestergade, Kongensgade, Brandts Passage, Flakhaven, and the HCA Statue in Eventyrhaven, Fairy Tale Castle in Eventyrhaven.

August 20: 6:00 PM: The Nightingale: Fairy Tale Castle in Eventyrhaven.

 

More information:
Lisa Johansen, mob: 25301090, mail: lisa@learnforlife.dk

 

Background
 

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