FOLK IN THE STREET

Rhythms of Piotrkowska Street – fair of cultures and nations, flashmoby dance and folk parade The project will be implemented in different places and urban spaces in the city of Lodz: Piotrkowska Street and in the surrounding courtyards at Ksieży Młyn, in Lodz parks, in the White Factory and Retkinia. The project consists of folk dance activities, handicrafts, exhibitions and designs organized in historic and revitalized green spaces of the city, in direct contact with the audience and with their active participation. The project will be attended by all participants of the festival: dancers, singers, musicians, designers, photographers and animators-volunteers.

    •  Rhythms of Piotrkowska street – fair of cultures and nations, folk dance flashmobs and folk parade.

The festival will start on Piotrkowska Street, with the participants  from around 15 countries worldwide. In the designated areas there  will be folk dance flashmobs and animation addressed to the inhabitants of the city and tourists. There will be promotional stands, exhibitions presenting the culture of the participants of the festival during the “Fair of cultures and nations.” Activities will be aimed at presenting  the audience the rich and colorful forms of cultural heritage- not only Polish, but also of many other nations – dancing, singing, playing traditional instruments, traditional costumes and folk customs. Intercultural animations will lead to greater openness of local residents towards foreign cultures. The festival opens solemn yet joyous and full of positive energy parade of the participants down Piotrkowska street and presentations of music and dance. The participants in traditional costumes, with the flags of their countries will promote the beginning of the artistic event  and festival message about tolerance, openness and lack of cultural prejudices. The parade will encourage many people to participate in different parts of the festival. Each person will be able to take part in the weaving of fabric on a large loom set in the Schiller passage. Under the watchful eye Politechnika Łódzka students from the “Designer” group will be weaving multi-cultural fabric – a symbol, referring to the tradition of different cultures and nations connected by the idea of ​​friendship, goodness and tolerance.

    • Installation „Folkowa kamienica – tkanie na ścianie”

Installation designed by Greek design studio Entropika Architecture and Design Lab. Two designers visited Lodz for a few days  during last year’s 5th edition of the festival preparing for this project- studying postindustrial architecture, the murals, art and textile traditions. The result of this research is the project of installation on the facade of one of the houses in Lodz, functioning as a large loom, stretched between balconies and between the facade and the street level. Designers with the audience – volunteers, residents, and famous residents of Lodz  will interweave different patterns. “Threads” will function as  strings of a musical instrument due to  the use of conductive materials, sensors and digital technology. Street  happening is going to involve  the inhabitants of the city and is going to make them reflect on common historical, industrial and folklore heritage of the region. There will also be  dance and music performances. One of the selected tenement from the  revitalized area has been chosen for this project. The installation will be adapted to changing weather conditions and will be able to function throughout the period of holidays.The opening and closing of the festival will take place there. Installation, lighting and sound effects as well as dance theater will form this unusual multisensory show.

  • Videoclip „Łódź tańczy folk!”

 Videoclip based on the specially prepared musical composition and choreography, videoclip will create a multicultural show of  festival dancers and singers along with spontaneous interactions with the residents and passers-by. The video will be realized in a number of important points on the cultural map of Lodz:  Piotrkowska Street, Ksiezy Mlyn, in the White Factory, in parks but also in backyards and in Retkinia. Preparation of  the video will be preceded by  dance workshops. There  will be more than 200 dancers. Oberek-one of the Polish traditional dance will constitute  an important choreography element

  •  „Photo-folk-energy”

Are the  activities  of young photographers and their final exhibition “Golden Boat” in the category “Photography”. Images will be taken in different places. The purpose is to capture exciting, energetic festival events in characteristic for the city of Lodz spaces. Various street events, activity of young artists on the stage and the spontaneous, unpredictable program, creative youth initiatives will be of interest to young photographers. The most interesting works will be exhibited in the foyer of the concert hall in Studio during the final concert and in Pałac Młodzieży.

  • “A long time ago on Retkinia” -  quest  game

The game inspired by folk, contains the elements of history, geography and science education. It is an innovative, appealing to every age group form of educational game in the area. Quest is a kind of game involving the discovery of the heritage and the creation of routes that you can follow, taking into account information contained in the rhyming guidelines. Quest is addressed to children, adolescents and adults from Retkinia, as well as to people beyond the district. The game is designed to help you discover the secrets of the intricate elements of tradition and curiosities (not only historical) among seemingly unattractive blocks. The participant will reveal the forgotten secrets of Lodz from the days when Retkinia was a village. Quest is a great opportunity to carry out intergenerational activities focusing on  the treasures of the past.