Data

Feb. 16, 2023

Opening Timișoara 2023: an inclusive celebration for the entire community

General News

The Opening of Timișoara 2023 - European Capital of Culture (February 17-19) is an inclusive event, a celebration for the community as a whole. In this spirit, multiple measures have been taken to increase the accessibility of numerous events during the Opening weekend.

People with disabilities have few opportunities to go out in friendly spaces. For me, it's the first time I will come to a concert and be able to watch the Opening performance from Unirii Square at the same height as the rest of the audience or visit an exhibition

said Doru Mihăescu, a member of the Locomotor Handicapped Association.

In 2016, the year we won the European Capital of Culture, there was no single cultural space in our city without barriers accessible to people with disabilities. Over the years, inclusive facilities in newly renovated cultural spaces have become natural. More and more cultural operators are concerned with creating works and performances adapted for diverse audiences. The steps have been small, and making the entire city accessible remains a mission for the future. Still, we are on the right track to putting our values into practice

added Teodora Borghoff, an expert in social inclusion and member of the Curatorial Team of Timișoara 2023.

An elevated platform and artistic interpretation for a community concert experience

The celebration that begins on Friday evening in Unirii Square is accessible to people with disabilities. In the space in front of the stage, a metal podium equipped with handrails and a ramp has been installed to facilitate visibility of the stage for people who use wheelchairs, as well as a safe space for people with other types of disabilities. This platform is exclusively reserved for people with disabilities and their companions. It is based on a bracelet available on-site and at the info points hosted by the white domes in Libertății Square and Unirii Square. In addition, an adapted toilet booth has been installed in Țepeș Vodă Square, near the concert space.

For the first time in Timișoara, people with hearing impairments in the audience will benefit from the artistic interpretation of the concerts in Unirii Square. On Friday, February 17, between 7:25 pm and 10:00 pm, Lavinia Chițu (video), one of the few concert interpreters in Romanian sign language, will be on stage alongside the artists, translating the lyrics and conveying the rhythm of the music, so that people with hearing impairments can enjoy a memorable show.

Inclusive Spaces

The central collective exhibition of Timisoara 2023 Opening, "Chronic desire - Sete cronica", is hosted in an accessible space for people with disabilities at Maria Theresia Bastion (the building towards the Faculty of Medicine). The facilities include barrier-free routes from Punctele Cardinale and Continental Hotel, barrier-free entrance and an adapted toilet. Also, visitors with disabilities of Adina Pintilie's multimedia exhibition "Tu ești un alt eu – O catedrală a corpului" at Kunsthalle Bega, can use the access lift to the 1st floor of the building.

At Victoria Cinema (2, Ciprian Porumbescu street), notable European films and children's animations will be screened during the Opening weekend. In front of the cinema are parking spaces reserved for people with disabilities, the entrance is barrier-free and with a ramp, and there is also an adapted toilet.

The Faber Cultural Center (4-5 Splaiul Peneș Curcanul), where the "Bright Cityscapes: Mirroring the Ecosystem" exhibition will be inaugurated this weekend, is a space with barrier-free access and an adapted toilet as well. The Water Museum / Water Treatment Station (Calea Urseni) awaits you on January 18th and 19th with workshops for children and young people and guided tours. Two industrial heritage buildings have entrances and visitation routes without barriers, and the newly built pavilion is equipped with an adapted toilet.

Among the facilities at Basca Theater, where the "Zambara Kabarett" show will take place on Sunday, February 19, at 7:00 pm, there is a mobile ramp and support for access to the theater hall. The New Millennium Reformed Church, where the chamber concert performed by the Kosztándi Quartet from Hungary will take place on February 19 at 6:00 pm, has a barrier-free entrance.

The complete program of events within the Timisoara 2023 Opening - European Capital of Culture can be consulted on https://opening.timisoara2023.eu/program/

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The opening of Timișoara 2023 is a program financed by the Municipality of Timișoara, coordinated and organized by the Timișoara Project Center.

The national cultural program "Timișoara - European Capital of Culture in 2023" is financed by the Municipality of Timișoara, the Ministry of Culture and the Timiș County Council.

Main partners: Banca Transilvania, Catena, Cramele Recaș, Linde Gaz Romania, Iulius Mall

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