Groningen, May 2026

In May 2026, two groups of students from project Year 2 at the University College Groningen have performed a series of public interventions in the Noorderplantsoen park and the Nieuwe Markt in Groningen. Following their active engagement with performance-based methods, under the guidance of the ACT UP! team and NITE theatre partners, over a semester, the students went out in the world to tackle two climate-related issues that preoccupy them: the capacity of music and dance to bring local communities together and raise awareness about the responsible use of urban natural spaces, as well as a call to hold ultra-rich CEOs and large corporations accountable for the negative effects of their extractivist activities on global climate. During and after their interventions, the students engaged in conversations with local audiences on the above-mentioned subjects, as well as on the capacity of performance-based methods to illuminate such issues and produce affective responses that could lead to the creation of new realities.

Photo credit: Niels Knelis

Viljandi and Narva, April 2026

This spring, the performing arts students at the University of Tartu Viljandi Culture Academy have been acting up for all the right reasons! The pilot course of ACT UP! methods in Estonia just wrapped in Viljandi. Throughout the semester, students transformed climate anxiety into creative action, staging interventions in both Viljandi and Narva. The students tackled many different topics: consumerism, the environmental toll of war, corporate accountability, CO2 emissions, exploitation of nature and birth pressure in the context of climate change. To develop their ideas, students engaged in various practical exercises, visited a performance called Endless Summer by Priit Põldma (Rakvere Theatre), and learned how to measure the impact of their performances. 

Groningen, 29 March 2026

On the 29th of March 2026, as part of their Year 2 project, students from Groningen attended the performance HOPE, an interdisciplinary theater production from NITE, Club Guy & Roni and Thalia Theater Hamburg presented at the local Stadsschouwburg. Two days later the students had a workshop at the Machinefabriek with Rosie Reith, a member of NITE and one of the actors in HOPE where they discussed the themes explored in the performance. After their discussion the students pitched their upcoming interventions to Rosie. She offered them feedback and guidance in how to materialize their ideas, as well as engaged them in a series of practical exercises aimed at teaching them how to convey ideas through the use of their bodies. 

Groningen, 17 March 2026

On the 17th of March 2026, researcher and theatre practitioner Frank Kupper met with students from the University College Groningen for a workshop on Augusto Boal's Image Theatre. Under Frank's guidance the students created physical images with their bodies in order to represent various societal issues. Moreover, they attempted to imagine potential solutions to these issues using their bodies as vehicles for communicating a message. The class ended with a round of expert feedback on the students' upcoming interventions provided by Frank Kupper and one of our project's Estonian partners, Anneli Saro, who joined the meeting online. 

Viljandi & Narva, 10-14 February 2026

Between 10-14 February 2026, the ACT UP! project partners met in Viljandi for a series of joint working sessions and meetings with students from the UT Viljandi Culture Academy. Together with the students, they engaged in a variety of activities, ranging from teaching sessions to site analyses, that were aimed at facilitating knowledge exchange around the topic of performative urban interventions in various global regions. During the last day, they all traveled to Narva where they met local activists, visited the NART residency as well as perform a collective walk through the city.

Oslo, 23 October 2025

In October 2025, the OsloMet team presented on ACT UP! during a seminar titled 'Activism and Academic Rebellion' in which the  relation between activism, research and teaching was discussed. 

Oslo, 6-10 October 2025

During one intense week, the ACT UP! team worked with MA students in Art & Society and Theatre & Society at Oslo Metropolitan University towards creating a performative political action in public space. The aim of the week was for the students to get the experience of acting together as bodies in public and use performative methods to convey a political message concerning the climate crisis. The students got inputs from theatre makers and activists, alongside training in methods to work with site, audience and societal issues. The final interventions were performed to audiences in public space on October 10th and for the OsloMet university staff and students on October 16th.

Groningen, 26 September 2025

The UG team contributed to the European Researchers' Night with a workshop titled 'Theatre for Change'. 

Groningen, 16 June 2025

UG students created a mini-documentary about the process of preparing and executing their intervention 'Funeral for the Earth', taking place at the Noorderplantsoen in Groningen. They presented it on Project Presentation Day at University College Groningen.

Groningen, 13 May 2025

In preparation for their theatrical urban interventions, students from Groningen participated in a workshop at Groningen's Machinefabriek. During the workshop, students were challenged to critically examine their interventions and leave their comfort zones through a number of pressure-cooker assignments.

Groningen, 24-26 March 2025

The UG team participated in the Education Festival 2025 'Inspiration, Education and Impact' with a poster titled 'Theatre-based Methods for Transdisciplinary Learning in Staging Urban Politics'.      

Groningen, 21 March 2025

The UG team contributed to UG's  Wubbo Ockels School for Energy and Climate Annual Event 2025 with a workshop titled 'Climate Adaptation needs Imagination! Theater as a route to social change in climate adaptation'. 

Groningen, 10 February & 13 March 2025

As part of their Year 2 project, students from Groningen attended an open rehearsal and the try-out of Nachtwacht, an interdisciplinary theater production from Club Guy & Roni and NITE in the Stadsschouwburg. The students are  working with NITE to develop their urban interventions, and this excursion gave them an opportunity to see interdisciplinary theater in action.

Groningen, 21 January 2025 

On January 21st, 2025 we officially launched ACT UP! with a kick-off event in Groningen. The kick-off event brought the project partners, students, and academics together for a presentation of the project followed by a Q&A session. Rike Sitas from UCT gave an engaging lecture on arts-based practices and urban politics.

Tartu, 08 October 2024

The UG team presented the ACT UP! project at the 'Enlight Teaching and Learning' conference that took place in Tartu.