Kedja

Full programme and schedule released!

Photo: Vesa Loikas Photography

The full programme and schedule of Stretch Turku is now released – hooray!
Download your own copy and schedule here.

What does working in the dance field look like nowadays? How is it changing and how can we develop the working culture in a more sustainable direction? What role does dance play in the society? Inspiring discussions and encounters, morning classes and new perspectives on working in the dance field – Stretch is an international dance encounter for all dance professionals, from artists and dancers to producers, managers and pedagogues.

Sign-ups and ticket sales will open already on 5th of September so stay tuned for further instructions!

The very last call for registrations!
In order to take part in the programme, you need to be registered.
REGISTER HERE by 2nd of September.

The Stretch Turku dates are 17th to 20th of October 2019 – be sure to arrive already the 16th!

Registration extended to 2nd September!

Photo: Uupi Tirronen

Time and support for your professional growth – register now to Stretch Turku! Inspiring conversations, inspirational meetings, morning classes and new perspectives for working in the field of dance. Stretch Turku welcomes all dance professionals from choreographers and dancers to producers and managers to Finland in October.

What does working internationally mean in times of climate change? What does it mean to work sustainably as an artist? What can cooperation between artists and producers look like? These are few of the questions we throw in the air. On top of these we will tackle the issues of coaching, content marketing, creating service concepts and much more. Stretch Turku will address these questions and topics in keynotes and panel discussions but we also work together in workshops to find concrete solutions for them. All this to support the daily life of dance professionals.

The full program and timetable will be published on the week 35 and the registration is open until the 2nd of September. There are already over 120 dance professionals registered so be quick and book your spot now! Read more and register here. The registration fee is 40 € (VAT 0%) per person.

Be sure to follow Stretch on Facebook and Instagram.

P.S. New Performance Turku Festival is an international festival for performance and live art taking place in Turku at the same time with Stretch. More information about the festival can be found here.

New programme releases and schedule out!

kedjaMariehamn 2014 © Uupi Tirronen

Summer is here and so are the new programme releases for Stretch 2019 Turku – check this out!

An array of working sessions and practical workshops will deal with various subjects such as artist residencies, coaching methods, contextualisation and dance dramaturgy, leadership, collaborative work, sustainability, the relationship between artists and producers, content marketing, mapping your work process etc.

The exciting speakers include Alison Tickell, founder of Julie’s Bicycle (UK) that supports the creative community to act on climate change and environmental sustainability. Alison Tickell’s keynote is brought to us via video conferencing.

Have a look at the schedule overview and get ahead with planning your trip. Thursday 17th through Saturday 19th will be full programme days, so we strongly recommend arriving in Turku on Wednesday 16th and departing on Sunday 20th.

See the updated programme and schedule overview here and register to Stretch Turku here.

Keðja presents: Stretch 2019 Turku is an international encounter in October, open for dance professionals from Nordic, Baltic and European countries.

The main theme of the Stretch 2019 Turku programme is Expanding Professionalism. The focus is on capacity building and acquiring new skills, new working models and better communication about dance. All these are key issues when developing the dance field toward a more sustainable direction. These themes will be dealt with through talks and discussions, workshops, sharing sessions and roundtables.

Registration for Stretch 2019 is now OPEN!

Professionals from all over the dance field will gather in Turku for discussions, workshops, morning classes and to network with international colleagues. The encounter continues the activities of the Nordic-Baltic dance network keđja.

keđja presents: Stretch 2019 Turku is held on 17–20.10.2019. The theme for this international encounter for dance professionals is Expanding Professionalism. It addresses professional practices of dance artists now and in the future, international work and sustainability, the possibilities of residences ja the relationship between art and the societal context.

Stretch 2019 will include speakers and participants from the Nordic and Baltic countries but also from other European countries, such as Germany, Slovenia and Scotland. The programme will include social events, workshops, morning classes and performances by local artists in the evenings. The aim is to develop your skills, improve communication about dance, and find new ways to operate.  

We welcome all professionals and students from the field of dance: from choreographers and dancers to producers and managers.

The registration for the encounter has opened on March 29th.

REGISTER HERE

You may register one or several people at once. The registration fee is 40 € (VAT 0%) per person and the payment is made during registration.

First pieces of the Stretch programme published!

keðja presents: Stretch Turku
17-20 October 2019

The main theme of the encounter is Expanding Professionalism and the focus will be on capacity building and acquiring new skills, new working and operating models and better communication about dance. All these are key issues when developing the dance field toward a more sustainable direction.

These themes will be dealt with through talks and discussions, workshops, sharing sessions and roundtables. 

See the programme here!

Thursday 17th through Saturday 19th will be full programme days, so we strongly recommend arriving in Turku on Wednesday 16th and departing on Sunday 20th.
More information on practical arrangements and traveling here.

In order to take part in the programme, you need to be registered.

Register to Stretch Turku here.

Stretch 2019 announces the opening key note!

Stretch 2019 – expanding professionalism is an international encounter for dance professionals that aims to tackle professional, structural and operational issues in the dance field. The themes are discussed in lectures, panels, working groups and workshops.


The opening key note is given by Dr Kai Lehikoinen, Director of CERADA Center for Educational Research and Academic Development in the Arts at Uniarts Helsinki. He is also Vice-Director of ArtsEqual research project and Team Leader for the research group Arts in Health, Welfare & Care. Lehikoinen’s academic work includes publications on dance analysis, competence analysis and curriculum development in artistic boundary work, and expanding professionalism in the arts.

Lehikoinen says that Stretch is needed because brings new ways of operating and better communication about dance into discussion. “In-depth artistic knowledge and versatility are important to people working in the field of dance. But we also need better insight when it comes to other professional skills and communicating about dance”, Lehikoinen states. “Discussing the development of dance professions is necessary within the field and more generally in relation changes in the world of work.”

Stretch 2019 brings the dance community from all Nordic countries and beyond come together to discuss, share best practices, give new ideas and network. The program includes performances, morning classes and social gatherings with opportunities for networking and peer support.

Stretch 2019 is held in Turku, Finland from 17th to 20th of October.

Subscribe to the newsletter of Stretch to be one of the first to receive information about the program, performances and the kedja network!

 

Follow us on social media too!

Facebook: /stretchkedja

Instagram: @stretch.kedja

Save the date: STRETCH 2019

STRETCH in Turku, Finland
17th to 20th of October 2019

STRETCH 2019, Dance Encounter in Turku (Finland) is held from the 17th to 20th of October 2019, and it focuses on expanding professionalism. The themes are discussed in seminars, lectures, panels and workshops. The program includes performances, morning classes, field trips and social gatherings with opportunities for networking and peer support.

The dance community from all Nordic countries and beyond come together to discuss, share best practices, give new ideas and network in a three day meeting. 

STRETCH focuses on three thematic areas of development.

1) Personal development and new skills
2) New ways of organising productions
3) Interaction with the community and better communication about dance

Through these main themes STRETCH focuses on widening and expanding the workfield, discourses cultural policies and aims to create new collaborations with local, Nordic and international networks.

The encounter is built on the experience and community that was built during the keðja encounters from 2008 to 2015. STRETCH expands the idea and themes of keðja by stretching skills, the workfield and its structures. The Nordic dance community expands its professional networks by inviting colleague organisations and professionals from Baltic and European countries to participate.

Contact and additional information:

Ada Vakker
Producer
STRETCH
stretch.kedja@gmail.com

Share your experiences with keðja seen in relation to EU, answer this survey!

Clare Sherlog is a junior at Princeton University studying public policy in the Woodrow Wilson School. She is currently conducting independent research on cultural policies in the European Union, and have been studying keðja as an example of a cultural policy that promotes intercultural dialogue.

The  answers to the survey below will help her examine the effects of keðja in particular as a method of promoting unity and identity under the European Union. If you have participated in keðja activities please answer the survey: http://goo.gl/forms/tdMv3Acd8B

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Thank you in advance, looking forward to hearing back from you.

Clare E. Sherlog
Princeton University Class of 2017
Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs
Program in Dance, Lewis Center for the Arts