BIRCA calls for 24

We are super happy that we have the opportunity again in 24 to give a lot of performing artists space to do artistic research and development on Bornholm. This year with a focus on being a laboratory for the new ecological performing arts. We can only do that because we continue to develop formats and methods together with the wonderful artists associated with BIRCA. Every single person leaves seeds that will eventually sprout and blossom – thank you all! And we can also only do it because we get support – this year the residencies have been created with support from the Norwegian Arts Foundation, Creative EU and the Nordic-Baltic Mobility Program for Culture funding for residential visits.

Here you get a small overview and links where you can see each of the calls described in detail – find the one that suits you and send calls on in your network to people who can benefit from them. Each call is associated with a performing artist who helps develop the format, select participants and comes and does an introductory workshop. Please note that Island Connect has an earlier deadline and is applied from our joint website. The rest have a deadline of 31/1 via email to BIRCA. All calls work with ecology in the performing arts – we want to explore questions about landscape, nature, relationships, biodiversity, climate etc – and how we can act in this complexity and find new formats for the performing arts.

BIRCA Women – will be held this year 29/4-12/5 with Nana-Francisca Schotländer as facilitator. Call is open to all performing artists from all over the world who identify as female. The deadline for submission is 31/1-24. Find the full call here

BIRCA Kids – will be held this year for one week, 24-30/6 and again this year with My Grönholdt as facilitator. Call is open to Danish-based artist families. The deadline for submission is 31/1-24. Find full call here

BIRCA Baltic Sea – held 13-26/5 with Tora Balslev as facilitator. Call is open to performing artists based in Sweden, Finland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. Find full call here

Island Connect – we are starting a new 3-year period with support from Creative EU, and we have new partners in Sardinia, Corsica and Tenerife. Furthermore, the project is now geared more towards the fact that it is about island identity and insularity issues – we simply want you to take a curious and investigative look at the European island societies – you might benefit from reading this article Susanne Danig have written – but the topic is completely open, and we are quite excited about what is offered. All selected artists will have the opportunity to participate in our large Springlab, which this year takes place on the island of Vis in Croatia 2-7/4 – so you must be able to participate there too. Read about Island Connect and find calls and material here.

We work with 3 formats in Island Connect:

1) Artistic Residencies. The format we have previously worked with, where we select a group and exchange with another island for a 2×2 week residency – this year BIRCA is exchanging with Tenerife with the very exciting center LAV – and the two periods are here 27/5-9 /6 at BIRCA and 24/6-5/7 at Tenerife. Deadline for application 10/1-24.

2) A new co-creation format, where we invite a performing artist from each area to a joint development residency, where new ideas for future projects will be created, the production and screening of which the network will support. BIRCA is responsible for the development of this and will also host the first of its kind in 24. We have decided to develop this together with Ilon Lodewijks, who will therefore be the Danish participating artist. So no call this year for Danish performing artists – but performing artists from Italy, France, Ireland, Croatia, the Balearic Islands and the Canary Islands can apply – so feel free to forward.

3) A format we call Islander Focus, which is about initiating new collaborations with new islands regarding residencies. We are in the process of developing that, and therefore the call is not finished yet. But if you now have contact with someone who would like to play with us on new islands, ask them to contact BIRCA – and this will be done in 24, 25 & 26. We at BIRCA are quite far in the planning for 24, where we will exchange with the Estonian island of Saarama – and it will happen in August. Call as soon as we are ready.

We hope you have the courage to send us an application and that we have not made it too difficult for you. Do not send applications that do not fit into our focus – save your efforts. And focus the applications you send on your visions and ideas. If you have any questions about any of this, send an email to info@BIRCA.org.