The characteristic productions of the Petit Liceu are of unquestionable musical quality and they have amazed the little ones. Petit Liceu is the flagship of the educational project at the Liceu, but it is only part of all the activities that brings to life the Liceu commitment to bring opera to everyone. Sira Torrecillas, head of the Education Department of the Gran Teatre del Liceu talks about the challenges of programming for a very demanding audience and how rewarding it is to arouse emotions in children.
A COMMITMENT TO SOCIETY
KM: Your educational project has a strong presence in the Liceu. What is the motivation to devote so much space to children?
ST: Our educational project is designed to understand "education" in a broad sense. Many of the activities that the theater runs, and that are not necessarily aimed at children, have a clear educational intention, such as the informative conferences we in libraries, community centres or associations, the previous sessions we do before the functions for the general public, or some productions from Petit Liceu that can also introduce opera to adults.
In spite of our educational project not aiming only to children, they are clearly the first link of a long chain, and showing opera to them means we are sowing the seeds of future music lovers.
Therefore, it is all about offering the first contact with opera to the youngest generation, adapted to their needs and interests, which in turn allows them to develop new skills and enjoy fully the experience of opera, dance and music in general.
Children have a natural predisposition to music and it is very good that the environment offers all possible resources to contribute to this natural stimulation, accompanying the growth of smaller children through pleasurable experiences.
How is opera, as opposed to other music genres, beneficial to a child’s growth and development?
Opera is one of the most complete and diverse shows. In opera we found vocal music from soloists and chorus, instrumental music, ballet interventions, texts, stage sets, costumes, lighting, etc. And it has the advantage that these elements are offered live.
On the other hand, opera, by combining all these elements gives the texts the strength and emotion that you don’t find in other genres, because in the end, an opera tells a story and by listening to opera children (and older people) can develop their imagination, learn to be tolerant, discover other cultures, improve their vocabulary, understand the development and evolution of plots and characters. Above all, they build their love for music and understand the connection between different artistic disciplines so they learn to appreciate art in general. The opera is living literature, in motion. It uses several languages simultaneously which causes the message to gain more value and meaning.
PROGRAMMING AND WORKING FOR CHILDREN
What challenges do you face when designing the programme and activities of your educational project?
When the Liceu began its commitment to the educational community and society in general through a series of educational activities in the early 1980s, we were practically the only ones who were offering these types of activities and shows.
Today the educational project has been consolidated by creating a stable program with a very characteristic staging and with unquestionable musical quality.
However, a major challenge lies in the fact that in recent years there has proliferated much competition in the field of cultural activities offered to children. Teachers and families have a wide range to choose from. Aware of all this, the Liceu works to make the pedagogical and educational area grow and evolve.
Another challenge is to maintain a balanced season with our most established titles and the introduction of new productions with which we try to adapt to a changing context and where we want to include more participatory and interactive elements.
And one of the challenges that I think is shared by much of the cultural sector is to attract the attention of an audience such as range 13-14 years to 30. It is often possible to find appropriate activities and productions attractive to this age, but the difficulty is to get them to come and see them. In trying to reach this goal we combine the educational strategy with a special pricing policy.
Another difficulty we face is to fit the Petit Liceu productions on the space we have. There is only one stage at the Liceu and the many activities and functions taking place in its areas are not always compatible or possible at the same time.
It is also very important for us to try to break certain barriers and end stereotypes such as those about opera being elitist, expensive, only for experts or not suitable for all audiences.
What do you seek to awake in the young audience with the Petit Liceu productions?
They (the productions) seek to arouse interest and especially emotions. As I mentioned, it is important to break certain barriers and stereotypes around opera. The little ones don’t have certain prejudices and therefore it is easier to reach them, but as they approach adolescence it is increasingly difficult to capture their interest.
It is our intention to draw their attention so they can discover a new way to develop their imaginative and creative abilities.
It is all about awakening sensitivity in children and young people, their aesthetic sense, their listening and introducing them to the elements of music.