Taking part in the event held with the support of the Russian Ministry of Culture and the Kaluga Region Government were over 1,000 participants from 79 regions, including 300 in-person.
Expert speakers included Artistic Director of the Chekhov Moscow Art Theatre, stage and film actor Konstantin Khabensky; stage and film actress, public activist, audio describer of the highest category Irina Bezrukova; Rector of the Russian Institute of Theatre Art – GITIS Grigory Zaslavsky; director, senior teacher at the acting department of the Boris Shchukin Theatre Institute Valentin Stasyuk, and other representatives of the theatre community.
In her opening remarks, Maria Lvova-Belova noted that social theatre and theatre training have great potential in working with children and teenagers, in particular, those who need special support and attention, such as orphans, children with disabilities, children registered for preventive care, or survivors of abuse.
It was noted that social theatre is becoming more popular as a professional training discipline, too. For example, GITIS offers training under a master's programme, and the Boris Shchukin Theatre Institute, together with the Russian Schoolchildren's Movement, is implementing the School Classics nationwide project.
On the first day, performances by social theatres from Moscow, Kaluga and Rostov regions were shown at the festival venues. The second day was devoted to training programmes for professionals working in this field. Various aspects of activities of inclusive, teenage, school and family theatres were discussed.
Following the festival, a package of measures for the development of social theatre in Russia will be prepared and sent to the Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of Education.