LEOPOLDSBURG CULTURAL CENTRE — a Belgian cultural centre expert in territorial development on local level!
Leopoldsburg Cultural Centre is a municipal non-profit and sociocultural institution, with 2 venues (incl. a 440 seats theatre) based in Leopoldsburg, a small town in the province of Limburg in Belgium. They are subsidised by the municipality of Leopoldburg and the Flemish government. They provide a (social-)artistic programme with among others concerts, comedy, theatre, exhibitions as well as creative courses, lectures and workshops for adults and children. Anchored in strong regional roots, they think art and culture are tools to build a stronger local community and to promote (cultural) participation which should lead to cultural equality, intercultural diversity and sustainability. Some examples of their projects: "Culture Café" (as culture has to be accesible for everyone, even if you can't afford it, they offer tickets at a very low price for this event) — "TROEP" youth project (a participative project with young citizens from in and around Leopoldsburg) — "A variety of World Music on stage" (concerts organised in the framework of the "Toernee Mondial" project, a network of venues in Flanders that focuses specifically on world music in its broad sense, and on international visual humor) — "Opening Doors" (performances of a group of 30 actors with a learning disability under the artistic direction of theater group HETGEVOLG, organised each year at the close of the season).
Since: 1981
Staff members: 10-20
Expertise: Territorial development on local level
Target groups: Children (0-12 years old) — Young people (13-30 years old) / students — Families — Seniors — Refugees & migrants — Low-income and homeless people
Areas of work: Sociocultural activities & cultural mediation — Artistic activities — Community & civic activities — Art education & other educational activities — Local / regional / national projects — International projects (EU and beyond) / managing EU funds — Event management — Artistic creation / production — Cultural distribution and promotion —Networking / cooperation
Fields of work: Theatre — Music — Amateur art — Painting, drawing — Photography — Craftwork
Topics of work: Diversity, minorities, interculturalities & identities / migration & refugees — Fighting discrimination / stereotypes, inclusion, social cohesion & community development — Children and young people — Disabilities & inclusion — Participation / audience engagement — Impact of cultural activities — Good governance — Creative & cultural industries — Territorial development on local & regional level — Revitalisation / activation of public space — Voluntary work
EU/International cooperation: "Opening Doors" project (Grundtvig programme, target groups: adults with learning disabilities, partners: Opening Doors England and Opening Doors Malta) — "ART-is" project (Grundtvig programme, side project of Opening Doors, partners from 8 European countries) — "Tandem Europe" (community arts and exchange project for European cultural managers) — "Korea" Project (exchange project with the contemporary artist association Daegu under artistic direction of Kim HyangGum)
Priorities for the network: Inspiration — Projects — A chance for the staff of cultural centres to network at European level and to get inspired by best practices from colleagues abroad.
