Age Against The Machine
European Solidarity Network for Older Citizens Rights (ID.101138625)
Network of Towns, Citizens, Equility, Rights and Values Programme
(CERV-2023-CITIZENS-TOWN-NT)

Start and conclusion: 02-2024 to 02-2026
Project ID: 101138625
Seven beneficiary partner entities in Serbia, Poland, Italy, Denmark, and Portugal; and one associated partner in The Netherlands.

The Centre for Art History and Artistic Research (CHAIA, U Évora), in collaboration with Évora City Council, participates in the European program CERV Network of Cities (Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values), in the “Age Against the Machine” project (ID-101138625), with other seven international partners, to broaden the dialogue and reflect on age prejudices and discrimination at a sociocultural level in the European context. All partners will be involved in relevant sociocultural issues through the language of theatre and interactive performative methods. In particular, the Portuguese case study will work with memories, experiences, body and sensory knowledge, and the construction of images to reflect on ageing and gender and on physical and mental health issues in the sociocultural context of Alentejo. Therefore, this intergenerational community collaboration at the European level aims to challenge existing European policies regarding older populations, promoting equality and human rights as fundamental EU values.

This is a performative-based intergenerational community research involving active social participation, active ageing and well-being, intergenerational learning and sharing experiences with senior residents of the municipality of Évora and students from the University of Évora. This research involves the collaboration of Évora City Council (Socio-Cultural Department - Youth and Sports Division) in the context of Évora European Capital of Culture - 27, and it counts with the participation of 16 senior residents, 7 students in audio-visuals and performing arts, and a research team of 6 members (CHAIA UÉ- CM Évora). During an artistic research process, participants engage in a laboratory of experimentation and performative creation, with creative workshops using a combination of various participatory applied theatre methodologies.

We will engage in a process of a participatory creative dialogue and sharing with the objective of creating two performances: one that involves a performative intervention in public spaces in the city of Évora, in June 2024, and a second one, in October 2024, within an interactive scenic-theatrical format that will tour five International Festivals in Denmark, Italy, Portugal, Poland, and Serbia.