Culture that transforms
No one doubts that culture is one of the best tools for sparking an emotional connection. Who doesn’t remember a book, an exhibition, or a play that changed their perspective?
Art itself constitutes a space for expression, meeting, social participation… And at the same time it is also the ideal environment for transcending all kinds of barriers (relational, physical, communicative…). For all these reasons, we do our utmost so that the young people of Punt de Referència see and experience culture first hand.
We present you with a small sample of activities in which our young people and volunteers are participating, thanks to the collaboration of the Els Pirates Company of the Maldà theater and the Community Mediation team of the Center for Contemporary Culture of Barcelona (CCCB):
THEATER SUNDAYS
The Maldà theater is one of the entities collaborating in bringing to young people the thrill of acting. It offers tickets to different shows completely free of charge for mentoring pairs from the Referents project. The musicals There must be a life away from here [Hi ha d’haver una vida fora d’aquí] and Broadway in Maldà and the comedy The Good Policeman [El bon policia] (which now will be scheduled again) are two of the recent plays that the young people have enjoyed with their mentors.
The mentors tell us about the experience:
Broadway al Maldà
“The show was a delight. Highly recommended. The plot was about the relationship between Broadway lyricists and composers, which prompted the singer to perform emblematic songs from the history of the musical while accompanying himself on the piano. I loved it and I think that [my mentee] did too, although it was difficult for him to sit still: it seemed like he had St. Vito’s disease!” (Olga)
“The work is dynamic and fun with a series of songs. The actresses know how to convey the background of the common thread of the songs. Despite being in Catalan, [my mentee] commented that he understood the message about the role of women. Highly recommended!” (Anna)
There must be a life away from here
“We really liked the theater, they were very punctual and the play’s focus on the evolution of women from the 50s up till now –almost all with songs accompanied by small dialogues– was very enjoyable and easy to understand. Both Aissatou and I really enjoyed it. The theater is small but fascinating and transports you to another era.” (Rosa)
EXHIBITIONS TO SEE AND EXPERIENCE
The Contemporary Culture Center of Barcelona (CCCB) is another of the organizations committed to bringing culture closer to everyone including, of course, the young people that we accompany. From the World Press Photo exhibit to others, these exhibitions have opened minds and at the same time allowed the public to enjoy the creativity and feeling emanating from them.
The relationship between Punt de Referència and the CCCB has been intense and productive. On February 9th, the CCCB theater hosted the final event of the 25th anniversary of Punt de Referència. and in 2022 young people from Punt de Referència participated in the presentation of the book, Journey to Mars. This is a collective story exploring another possible world, gathering experiences including those of tutored and ex-tutored young people, about displacement and the journey they undertook to arrive in our country.
Another project, ‘Som Llavor’ [We are Seeds], promotes get-togethers and practical training on audiovisual creation for young migrants. It regularly organizes cultural outings in different places, such as Casa Golferichs and the Catalan-Roca photography space in Barcelona.
We will continue our commitment to disseminate culture because we know that it changes the way we see things, transforming us in the process: because we know that cultural participation is a right for all to enjoy; because the experiential and playful dimension of arts-related activities are useful in creating a sense of community. Also, does anyone doubt that many of the artistic creations we’ve seen and experienced have helped us become the people we are today?
Thanks to all the collaborating entities for making it possible! The cultural outings are part of the international project, Road to Adulthood, committed to innovation in mentoring models based on shared learning.