Thanks to all the Coast partners and other friends who joined us for the acta festival, 26 – 29 March.

We were delighted that BBC Point West covered the international festival on Wednesday 28 March – thanks BBC!

The festival closing remarks were made by Francois Matarasso, whose words can be read in full on the Coastcooperation blog.

Some comments from the comments board:-

• Lovely to be involved with something so inspiring and well-organised!
• Both plays were amazing. Great work. (Tuesday night)
• Our Dream Journey – moving, simple, beautiful, fantastic
• Loved the song with actions! Really inspirational (Our Dream Journey)
• Loved the Polish company’s play – very moving, dreamlike.
• Isn’t it good to have time to talk with friends?
• Loved it, was epic.
• What a sound. What a language. What a show. What an opening night.
• It’s only Tuesday, and we’ve already seen 3 totally different examples of community theatre. About to go for number 4. Love it, fascinating.
• Really enjoyed Crossing Borders. Can’t wait to see more shows.
• Malcolm X Elders were brilliant.
• Amazing, and that’s all I can say!
• Theatre is”us,” around us and we all ”play on stage of life.” We’ve experienced something amazing, it was repleted with emotions, messages, communicating ‘’signs.” We’ve had a chance to come and see a great theatre performance. I can’t find exact words to express what we really feel. It was like a spiritual journey – for Seniors, my colleagues and me. You all teamed up and did beautiful COAST enterprise.

You can follow the preparations that took place for the COAST international festival of community theatre, and how we continue to share and learn form each other in the second year of our project, on the Coastcooperation blog.

Follow the COAST partners’ blog here

This work programme has been funded with support from the European Commission.

This communication reflects the views only of the author, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.

If you’d like to find out more about the learning from the two year Coast project, please contact Helen Tomlin, acta Programme Manager, helen@acta-bristol.com.

There will be a narrative & film documentation of the festival available later this year, and a Coast book and dvd available at the end of the project in 2013.

acta Community Theatre - Tahriib Haajiraad, Crossing Borders – Asha, Ajibo and Fatima escaped to Bristol in search of a better life, education and happiness. But how can they make sure their daughters grow up to be good Somali women? Mothers and daughters explore tensions between generations, cultures, expectation and reality.

Our Dream Journey – Grodzki Theatre, from Bielsko-Biała in Poland present a visual story about travelling and homesickness. Performance at the acta centre with actors, puppets, music and animations.

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Zhong – Rotterdams Wijktheater – Three daughters have to divide up their parents’ Chinese restaurant. A remarkable story, retold in an original show, devised and performed by the Chinese community of Rotterdam. The show performs at the Brewery Theatre, Tobacco Factory, and has been specially adapted for a Bristol audience.

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Expedition Metropolis (Berlin, Germany) presents the story of a young man who leaves Egypt in 1973 to find a new life in Europe. After 37 years in Berlin he is still wondering if he has ever found home. Based also on the performers’ own personal experience of migration, the production tells a collective story about the common need for movement and crossing borders.