SE.S.TA CENTRE FOR CHOREOGRAPHIC DEVELOPMENT
Since 1999, SE.S.TA Centre for Choreographic Development has worked to support the development of the movement arts – contemporary dance, new circus and physical theatre – in an international and interdisciplinary environment.
SE.S.TA is the only centre for choreographic development in Czechia. We are here to support artists, critics, educators and other professionals in the field and appeal to a broad audience that transcends the performing arts.
What do we do?
Support for professional artists
- Research and creation
- Exchange of know-how
- Theory and reflection
Artistic productions
- Interdisciplinary projects
- Creative educational programme
- Community arts productions
- International productions
Read what they say about us…
ReadWhere do we work?
ŽĎÁR NAD SÁZAVOU the Vysočina Region
A birthplace of original ideas for art and living, Žďár possesses an 800-year history and a vision for the twenty-first century. The baroque Žďár Estate, located under Santini’s Zelená hora, is an extraordinary site for artistic creation and research, where the genius loci and modern approaches to creation go hand in hand. Thanks to the KoresponDance Festival, we bring world-leading art to the Vysočina Region.
Space for artistic creation and research
A residence at the Žďár Estate offers a unique opportunity to work site-specifically. Architecture and history stretching back 800 years offers a rich resource for artistic creation.
The spiritual richness of Santini’s era is inspired by Baroque geometry. Traces of the turbulent 19th century recollect the importance of science and technology in our modern world. Today, we return to nature with the humble awareness that we too are a part of it, supporting sustainable projects and foregrounding respect for the planet. We tell the story of history through the most modern technologies and connect with a creative spirit that has endured for centuries.
The combination of traditional and industrial elements with modern, high-tech innovations creates a uniquely inspiring environment. All yourself to be inspired by both past and present and discover your artistic future.
Prague and the regions
Our creative education projects take place at various locations throughout Czechia.
SE.S.TA’s main headquarters is in Prague, where residencies with artistic coaching and interdisciplinary projects with our other partners take place. The KoresponDance Festival also includes a Prague edition, which always takes place in June.
In Prague, we collaborate with institutions of higher education, arts institutions and festivals. We focus on the transmission of know-how between professionals in the artistic and scientific fields.
Our partners include:
- The National Gallery Prague
- Studio ALTA
- Bazaar Festival
- 4+4 Days in Motion Festival
Abroad and in networks
Making connections through networks, we work with many Czech and international platforms to develop the arts and culture at the national and international levels:
- Nová síť – service organisation supporting the performing arts and an open culture
- uMĚNÍM – platform for creative teaching
- EFFE (Europe for Festivals, Festivals for Europe) – a prestigious designation and a network of festivals with exceptional artistic and community programs
- Centre Culturel de Rencontres – a European network designating cultural centres that enliven historical monuments through the arts and culture
- Be International – artistic creation in public space
- Green Streets of Europe – a sustainable path for the performing arts
Our Values
Interdisciplinarity
We connect different areas of the movement arts with other creative and artistic disciplines as well as fields and industries outside the arts. Meetings between experts – choreographers with curators, dancers with architects, performers with hip hop dancers, acrobats with industrial technologists, historians with ecologists – lead to the exchange of know-how and initiate new collaborations. We help people transcend the horizons of their fields to make remarkable connections. New points of view = new solutions.
Global–local
SE.S.TA is part of many international networks and most of our projects involve foreign and Czech partners working side by side. Artists benefit from the opportunities to network and showcase themselves, while audiences from the capital and regions enjoy contact with international artists at the KoresponDance Festival in Prague, Žďár nad Sázavou and our newest location, Nové Město na Moravě.
Site-people-specific
In Žďár nad Sázavou in particular, SE.S.TA offers a unique combination of historical architecture with a rich genus loci and the chance to collaborate with local communities. The work of artists enlivens the landscape, town, factory or industrial space. As a result, unique site-specific projects are created, in which art intersects with the expertise of local specialists. Creatives work with youth, seniors and communities of amateur dancers and the results of these collaborations often have international implications. We support projects that have something to offer to our unique space and community.
Art without barriers
We aim to address the inhibitions and even fears that people can sometimes experience when encountering the movement arts. We demonstrate that rational understanding isn’t always necessary, though we can help spectators develop that understanding. Through post-show discussions, Choreographic Cafés or Choreographic Fora, artists reveal the creative process and their inspirations. The KoresponDance Festival is proof of the fact that demanding and audience-friendly works can sit side-by-side in a single program. We are open to all genres and styles – quality new circus or street dance are an accessible gateway to the movement arts.
Theory–practice
We understand theory as a creative tool for artists to reflect on their intuitive impulses and transform them into an artistically communicable form. For SE.S.TA, theory emerges from practice – from the real needs of artists in relation to specific projects – so that it can find its way back into practice and be embodied in specific works of art.
Our Partners
Cultural and Creative Centre Vysočina
The Cultural and Creative Centre Vysočina (CCCV) is still in its infancy, but its ambitions are great. The aim is to build a modern centre in the historic premises of the Estate in Žďár nad Sázavou, which will serve as an interdisciplinary hub for the development of culture, art and creativity throughout the region.
We will create space for interdisciplinary encounters and a site for the exchange of know-how and experience between creatives, artists, scientists and representatives from the manufacturing and economic sectors. CCCV contributes to the representation of the Vysočina Region as a modern and creative place where art and innovation go hand in hand.