"Viavai di culture" – Theater workshops for racism prevention for children

“Viavai di culture” is part of the activation and implementation of projects and practices related to theatre as an educational resource.

“Viavai di culture” is part of the broader context of developing and implementing projects and practices that use theatre as an educational resource. In this case, the challenge is to provide primary school pupils with interpretative tools and practical approaches to address the issue of racism. The pilot project is based on a workshop-oriented approach that requires individual initiative and active participation, as well as group collaboration, engaging all relational dynamics.

Developed in collaboration with the municipal schools of Ascona and funded by Education21, “Viavai di culture” involves the creation of theatre workshops focused on diversity and human rights, with the aim of preventing racial and racist tendencies among young people. By offering students a space to experience group dynamics—encouraging cooperation and mutual consideration on the one hand, and the exploration of personal strength and individual voice on the other, balancing individual opinions with collective consensus—the project fosters autonomous student work. Through collective and small-group activities, students explore themes, develop ideas, and design short theatrical scenes.

Theatre thus becomes a tool to help students think critically and constructively, enabling them to form their own perspectives. By collectively addressing the situations created within the theatre workshops—as well as differences of opinion and conflicts—and resolving them together in a constructive way, the project promotes collaboration and mutual understanding.

At the end of this shared process—based on theatre workshops and reinforced by daily classroom teaching—both students and teachers will acquire essential skills to approach the issue of racism in a conscious and independent manner, not only within the school environment but also in their future lives.

The project is conceived and conducted by the Ascona Primary School and the Accademia Dimitri, with support from experts from Amnesty International and the Human Rights Foundation.

Through this pilot experience, the Accademia aims to develop key competencies necessary for creating a permanent service of theatre workshops focused on preventing racism, targeted at primary schools in Ticino.

Project Direction: Giorgio Gilardi, Director, Ascona Primary Schools
Researchers: Demis Quadri, Veronica Provenzale, Accademia Dimitri
Teachers: Daniela Adamina, Cristina Bianchetti, Samanta Perpellini, Ascona Primary Schools
Teaching Artists: Shahaf Michaeli and Kate Weinrieb, Accademia Dimitri
Workshop Coordination: Hans-Henning Wulf, Accademia Dimitri