Fomento de la participación ciudadana en la cultura vivida en primera persona

21 Distritos, the cultural revitalization program in the fields of culture, tourism, and sports in Madrid, reinforces its commitment to an open, accessible, and shared cultural model. The premise is that participatory processes have become a fundamental pillar in understanding and building culture. Through these processes, citizens not only access cultural offerings but also become active participants in the creative process, generating content, sharing experiences, and reclaiming public spaces.

Projects like Bueno Work, a picturesque piece created by Luz Arcas and developed in February in the district of San Blas-Canillejas, exemplify this approach. Designed as a picturesque collaboration laboratory, this initiative has brought together residents for over 65 years around a key question: what to do with bodies outside the productivity wheel? Over several sessions, the group worked through listening, movement, and dance to create a collective performance, showcasing that the artistic value lies in the process and the connection generated among the participants.

In the same vein, on April 26; May 3, 17, and 31; and June 14, Madrid from the Street will take place, a proposal to create and engage citizens, inviting them to travel, observe, and experience the city in a new light. Renowned photographer and teacher Hanna Jarzabek will host a workshop to build a collective portrait of Madrid from street experiences. Participants will explore a range of tools to create a visual story about themselves and their history, while also being encouraged to share their own experiences. New connections will be forged, both among participants and with the audience to whom the final photography exhibition will be presented, running from June 21 to July 5 at the Prince Cultural Center (Linear City).

In May, two participatory processes will be launched: first, on June 6, 7, and 8, there will be a research laboratory, Act, led by actress, director, and teacher Fernanda Orazi, aiming to explore the creative power of language. Secondly, on June 26, 27, 28, 29, and 30, Pablo Messiez will conduct five rehearsals of his upcoming work, The Human Form, open to the public, to gather insights on how his presence can be considered as material in his creative process.

Between June 2 and 14, the collective dance project I Will Be Epic or I Won’t Be will take place, focusing on community, social, and educational dance activities. This initiative aims to foster a sense of community and create a unique identity, bringing a contemporary, innovative, and avant-garde language that resonates with the new cultural and social realities of Madrid.

Finally, from September 29 to October 4, choreographer, dancer, and teacher Poliana Lima will offer an intergenerational dance workshop. The main goal is to promote dance as a meeting space in motion, welcoming people of all ages and movement experience levels, in line with Lima’s research on identity and diversity developed since 2017.

These experiences are part of 21 Distritos’ commitment to creating spaces for meeting and dialogue between artists and citizens, where culture is lived as a collective and transformative process.

More information at www.21distrito.es