Collettivo Clochart

A theatre and performance organisation based in Mori, Trentino, active since 2012.

We promote awareness-raising initiatives and educational projects throughout the local and national territory, using art, theatre, dance, reading and other forms of artistic experimentation as tools for social engagement.

Founded in 2012 as a small organisation dedicated to street theatre, Collettivo Clochart has undertaken an important process of growth and transformation over the years. Today, it is an established presence in the Italian landscape of social theatre, performance research and inclusion through the arts.

The name Clochart recalls the figure of the “clochard”, evoking the artistic nomadism, freedom of expression and spirit of street theatre from which the collective’s journey began. Over time, theatre has become a tool for connection, participation and inclusion, capable of valuing differences and placing each person and their uniqueness at the centre. The encounter with dance and dance theatre has opened up new possibilities for artistic research, fostering a dialogue between different artistic languages. This cross-pollination lies at the heart of the creative process, giving rise to an inclusive dance-theatre practice in which different abilities, bodies and sensibilities become artistic resources capable of generating new forms of expression.

Since 2022, Collettivo Clochart has been officially recognised and supported by the Italian Ministry of Culture (MiC) as a theatre company of national significance working in the field of social inclusion.

Philosophy

The presence of disability on stage is not a subject to be represented, but a living and active reality within the creative process. We do not tell stories “about disability”: we create performances in which artists with and without disabilities collaborate on an equal footing, bringing different bodies, languages and sensibilities to the stage.

Approach

We believe in a participatory creative process in which people with and without disabilities are involved not only in the performance itself, but also in the artistic and conceptual development of each production. Disability is not considered a separate dimension, but one of the many forms through which human experience manifests itself and, as such, has a place within theatrical language.

Method

Our productions are developed through a multidisciplinary approach that brings together techniques and languages from different artistic fields. The creative process draws on dance methodologies, with principles and tools inspired by the training programmes of the Royal Academy of Dance, as well as theatrical techniques such as mime, clowning, research into physical expressiveness and puppetry.

The research also incorporates elements of the Italian Commedia dell’Arte, using masks and character work as tools for exploring the relationship between identity, gesture and transformation on stage. The aim of this approach is not to standardise expressive abilities, but rather to recognise and enhance the distinctive performance qualities of each artist, transforming them into essential elements of the stage composition.