Distant Views

In order to get a good view of the whole you need to step back a little, and give yourself a broad outlook and time for adequate reflection. Views from a distance look out on the world from the metropolis, and from the world onto the metropolis. They look for familiar and unfamiliar characteristics, see the European Capital of Culture through the eyes of partners from Pécs, Istanbul and elsewhere, and take pleasure in these enriching outside influences.

Odyssey Europe

Six European authors will be taking their inspiration from Homer’s “Odyssey” to create new works for the stage. Drawing freely on motifs from the Odyssey they will let their figures step out of their own history to cast an unfamiliar look at the continent, its people and European culture. At the same time “Odyssey Europe” will be leading audiences through the daytime and twilight zones of the Ruhr. Episodes will be recounted from the life of the hero, Odysseus, as he stumbles through a landscape of memories in search of a future Europe. From February 2010 onwards, audiences will be able to accompany Odysseus on a two-day theatre journey.

Partners: Schauspielhaus Bochum, Schauspiel Dortmund, Schauspiel Essen, Schlosstheater Moers, Theater an der Ruhr Mülheim, Theater Oberhausen

Authors: Christoph Ransmayr (Austria), Roland Schimmelpfennig (Germany), Emine Sevgi Özdamar (Germany/Turkey), Enda Walsh (Great Britain), Péter Nádas (Hungary), Grzegorz Jarzyna (Poland).