Routes to solidarity: the wonderful bilateral initiative between Reactor and Norway's Para Film & Teater has successfully reached its grand finale!

Launched with excitement in November 2024, the wonderful bilateral initiative titled Routes to solidarity (Drumuri spre solidaritate) aimed to strengthen the beautiful friendship and cooperation between Reactor de creație și experiment from Cluj-Napoca and Norway's Para Film & Teater! Together, they set off on an artistic exploration of two warm and inspiring concepts – community and solidarity – right in the heart of Cluj-Napoca and Oslo.

Between November 2024 and February 2025, we celebrated two fantastic cultural exchange visits, from Romania to Norway and vice versa, focusing on the vibrant world of cultural management in both countries. Three brilliant cultural sparks from Romania (Doru Taloș, Alexandra Caras, Alexa Băcanu) and two from Norway (Rose Aker and Martin Thomas) enjoyed wonderful networking and an exciting cultural program in their partner's home country. It was a golden opportunity to discover new production tricks, share best practices to bring back home, and spark fabulous connections for future creative adventures!

The creative sparks flew even higher as this bilateral initiative also included a magical artistic exchange! Two fantastic Romanian artists (Petro Ionescu – director and playwright, and Adonis Tanța – performer and vocal coach) spent two wonderful weeks in Oslo, hosting a vibrant workshop for talented young Norwegian artists. Together, they proudly presented their creation to the public under the lovely title Solidarity og fellesskap! It was a beautiful collective journey where everyone used music and devised theatre methods to explore community and solidarity, weaving together personal stories and powerful collective moments.

Meanwhile, in Romania, three brilliant Norwegian artists (Rose Aker – actress, Martin Thomas – director, and Øystein Stene – playwright) set off on an intriguing exploration of online "Incel" communities and online hostility. During their exciting week in Romania, they connected directly with local women working in the videochat industry, as well as men using these platforms. Their captivating research came to life in a thought-provoking lecture-performance – Lonelyfans/Incelistan – followed by a lively, warm chat with the audience right at the Reactor theatre!

To top it all off, from February 10-13, Reactor hosted a fabulous showcase featuring six of its most spectacular recent productions! We were thrilled to welcome passionate artists, journalists, and cultural champions from both Romania and abroad. This jam-packed four-day celebration also featured a friendly networking meetup, an open and heart-warming discussion about solidarity in the arts, and a delightful guided tour of Cluj’s independent cultural hubs. We were absolutely delighted to host 16 lovely guests from abroad (Norway, Spain, Germany, the Czech Republic, Hungary, France, Italy, and Slovenia), 20 wonderful guests from across Romania (Bucharest, Târgu Mureș, Sibiu, Arad, Timișoara, Oradea, Satu Mare), alongside our amazing local theater-makers and theater-goers from Cluj-Napoca!

This wonderful showcase was also warmly supported by the Romanian Cultural Institute, the French Institute of Cluj-Napoca, and the German Cultural Center Cluj-Napoca. A big thank you to our supporters!

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The inspiring bilateral initiative "Routes to solidarity" is proudly funded by the EEA and Norway Grants – National Bilateral Fund under the RO-CULTURE Programme, through the call for bilateral initiatives "Bilateral cooperation for the development of contemporary art", with a generous non-reimbursable value of 598,010.66 RON (120,181.41 EUR). This wonderful journey took place from November 2024 to February 2025, bringing the vibrant cities of Cluj-Napoca, Romania, and Oslo, Norway close together.

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The EEA and Norway Grants represent the wonderful contribution of Iceland, Liechtenstein, and Norway towards a green, competitive, and inclusive Europe! They share two great goals: bringing European communities closer by reducing economic and social differences, and building strong, friendly ties between the donor nations and 15 EU countries in Central and Southern Europe and the Baltics. These three donor nations work hand-in-hand with the EU through the European Economic Area (EEA) Agreement. From 1994 to 2014, these generous partners provided EUR 3.3 billion in grants, and for the exciting 2014-2021 period, the EEA and Norway Grants support amounted to EUR 2.8 billion. To discover more about these fantastic opportunities, visit: www.eeagrants.org and www.eeagrants.ro.

The RO-CULTURE Programme is happily implemented by the Ministry of Culture through its Project Management Unit. Its wonderful goal is to boost economic and social development through the magic of cultural cooperation, cultural entrepreneurship, and heritage management. With a fantastic budget of approximately EUR 34 million, there are so many stories to be told! Read all about it at www.ro-cultura.ro.