Vidy + Shared projects

In order to open the theatre to as many people as possible, the theatre teams have designed different forms of presence and collaboration with schools, homes and various associations and communities in Lausanne and the Canton de Vaud.

Theatre and writing courses are offered to unaccompanied minors from the EVAM (Etablissement Vaudois d'Accueil des Migrant-e-s) homes, as well as activities for adults, such as: invitations to shows for the public without language barriers, visits to the theatre and discovery of its professions, as well as integration and professional integration courses.

These various projects have been carried out with the support of the Edmond de Rotschild Foundation, the Association des Ami·e·s du Théâtre Vidy-Lausanne.

The Association 1951 has been active since 2016 in the field of training and professional integration for statutory refugees. It wished to enable the 17 participants of the FIP measure (training and professional integration) Emploi to develop their skills in a way that engages the body as a whole.

February to May 2020, a weekly theatre workshop mixing body expression, texts and writing has allowed participants to share their emotions and to put into practice, in a playful way, their knowledge of French. These workshops were given by Isabelle Baudet (theatre workshop and workshop leader and founder of the troupe/school expression5/20+). Technical workshops were designed to complete this shared experience and help them discover the different theatre professions.

The whole thing should have resulted in a show that was to be presented to the public and partners on 8 and 9 May on the theme: "French is difficult". Because it is complex, precise and full of exceptions, French is not an easy language to learn. When it is not our mother tongue, everything is complicated and can give rise to funny situations. However, the arrival of the Coronavirus has shaken up what was taking shape.

In order not to abandon everything, the participants decided to reinvent this show in a different form, considering and integrating the constraints of lockdown and the technological means of each and everyone, guided by the skills of an audiovisual professional. 


The film Tous ensemble, chacun chez soi!

"We present you this little film that tells a little bit about us ... 
and a lot about this complicated situation."

This 10-minute film, produced in confinement, invites us to dive into a puzzle where texts and images mix to take us elsewhere while staying at home. An interior journey, allowing us to discover other cultures and share our values, our worries and our emotions.

This project, carried by the Association 1951 and the Théâtre Vidy-Lausanne, was made possible thanks to the Prix Diversité awarded to the Théâtre Vidy-Lausanne in May 2019 by the City of Lausanne and the Lausanne Office for the Integration of Immigrants.

For these workshops, the theatre regularly collaborates with Isabelle Baudet who trained in dance and body expression with Monique Bossard and Philippe Dahlmann. After graduating from the EESP in 1978, she decided to share her passion for theatre with children and teenagers. In 1982, she opened a private school of body expression and theatre and founded the company Expression 5/20+ in 1983.

The director and puppeteer Cécile Chevalier (Compagnie Tête dans le sac) and the director Catherine Travelletti (Compagnie Catatac) have also each offered a workshop for teenagers in Vidy.

More information on the next workshops for teenagers at Vidy on the family, kids and teenagers page

Lists of teenage workshops previously offered at the theater:

• In 16/17, 1 two-week training course for young people aged 14 to 18 (young people from the region and unaccompanied minors from the EVAM homes), with presentation of a show at the end of the course.
• In 17/18, 2 one-week courses for young people aged 14 to 18 (local youths and unaccompanied minors from EVAM homes), with presentation of a show at the end of the course.
• In 18/19, 1 one-week training course for young people aged 13 to 18 (local youths and unaccompanied minors from EVAM homes), with presentation of a show at the end of the course. As well as a long course Alice Revisited during season 19/20.
• In 19/20, 1 one-week course for young people aged 13 to 18 (local youths and unaccompanied minors from the EVAM homes), with a performance at the end of the course.

With the support of the Edmond de Rothschild Foundations for the launch of the initiative.

La Marmite is a cultural and civic project that offers multidisciplinary artistic itineraries to social groups of people of various ages, often in precarious situations. Each group completes its journey in a form created in dialogue with an artist.

In 17/18, the Baruch Spinoza Group followed the first route proposed by La Marmite in the canton de Vaud. At the end of this tour, the group, made up of exiled members of the Palabres association, presented visits around and in the theatre, conceived with the director Jean-Daniel Piguet.

In 18/19, the Françoise Héritier Group  brought together members of the Association des Familles du Quart-Monde de l’Ouest lausannois for a tour that ended with the presentation of a collective theatrical creation with director Guillaume Béguin.

In 2019/20, the Edouard Glissant Group, made up of male migrants who use the Espace Hommes d’Appartenances, was accompanied by musician Stéphane Blok as associate artist of the tour.

Vidy has also hosted several public meetings of the Marmite:

• L'attention: entre commerce et arts. Conversation with Yves Citton
• Démocraties et populismes. Conversation with Sandra Laugier
• Tradition et universalisme. La critique décoloniale. Conversation with Hanane Karimi
• Utopie ou piège de l'idéal? Conversation with Thierry Paquot
• Des voix inaudibles en démocratie. Conversation with Noémi Michel

With a successful experience of hosting a young migrant in 2017-2018 (in partnership with EVAM), the Théâtre Vidy-Lausanne now proposes itself as a resource company and partner of those involved in the professional integration of migrants. A wide variety of professions are represented within the Theatre (catering, reception of the public, machinery, sewing, carpentry...) for which internships are possible.

Different approaches and timeframes are proposed, from discovery and observation to practice over a longer period of time. In addition, trainees can benefit from an opening on the artistic and cultural dimension of the Theatre. The objectives are as follows:

• Learning or deepening of a professional activity, enhancement and development of self-confidence.
• Establishing and developing interpersonal relationships within a company that is both large and on a human scale: more than 100 permanent employees and numerous artistic teams in residence.
• Daily practice of French

In order to carry out this personalised accompaniment, the Théâtre Vidy-Lausanne works in close collaboration with various institutions and associations in Lausanne and is involved in training thanks to the participation of the mediation team and the various department heads concerned.

In 2019, the Théâtre Vidy-Lausanne has been rewarded for its commitment to the employability of migrant people through the Prix Diversité-Emploi-Formation 2019.

Launched in 2016, the Prix DEF rewards an employer who contributes, through concrete and exemplary actions, to the professional integration of migrants. The City of Lausanne, upon prior notice from the Lausanne Integration Commission (CLI) and the Lausanne Bureau for Immigrants (BLI), has chosen to award the prize in 2019 to the Théâtre Vidy-Lausanne for its visits, workshops and professional training courses for migrants.

Press release from Ville de Lausanne

After the workshops in Spring 2016, Vidy Theatre is continuing its discovery and theatre practice workshops for asylum seekers and unaccompanied minors from the EVAM centres (Etablissement vaudois d’accueil des migrants). By attending plays, visiting the theatre, discovering its careers as well as taking part in practical workshops held by artists linked to Vidy such as the author Antoine Jaccoud, this project aims to encourage the discovery of the theatre of today, by pooling different experiences and cultural traditions and adapting to each person’s situation.

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Le Théâtre de Vidy organise des ateliers de découverte et de pratique théâtrale en collaboration avec l’EVAM (Etablissement vaudois d’accueil des migrants) ou des foyers d’accueil pour enfants et adolescents. A partir d’une visite du théâtre, d’une découverte de ses métiers, d’ateliers de pratique et d’actions d’accompagnement autour des spectacles, ces projets visent à encourager la découverte du théâtre d’aujourd’hui par tous, en prenant en compte la situation de chacun.

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