Art director: Sunčica Milosavljević, PhD, BAZAART, Belgrade
"Welcome of the World / WOW" is a project of developing musical, soundart, literary, theater and dance productions and creative workshops for very young audiences – children from 3 to 5 years of age. In order to target this age group with its specific developmental requirements, the work is based on cooperation of creators/artists and experts in the field of pedagogy, developmental psychology, neuroscience and other sciences that study early child development. The support of scientific associates provides full pedagogical value of music and theatre art and supports a holistic model of artistic creation for children.
Designed as a research and creative interdisciplinary process, the “Welcome of the World” project runs in several phases / steps.
- The initial step is to acquaint the project team with scientific knowledge about the role and importance of sound and music as auditory information and stimuli, as well as the reception of art and creative activities of the child in his development at an early age. In this phase, we use the resources of the „B-AIR“ project network, specifically the webinars realized at the international level, as well as the possibilities for the exchange of knowledge through lectures and workshops held by experts from different disciplines and countries.
- Based on scientific knowledge, we develop first creative works: a story about up-growing and a music composition for young children. Aiming to support the development of a child at the early age, an interdisciplinary team consisting of music and theatre artists and pedagogues, as well as experts in pedagogy and early age education, participates in the creation.
- The narrative (story) and the recorded music serve as a basis for developing various creative stage work for young children, including creative workshops, where the performing expression is used in a free way, employing elements of dance improvisation, animation of objects, dramatic and visual arts expression, etc. The theatre play is performed for at least a year and during that time it is monitored how the audiences (children) react, and the effects are recorded and evaluated. Creative workshops with young children in kindergartens, initial elementary school grades and non-formal education programs, create immediate experiences of participation.
- Finally, the scenario of educational-creative workshops is shared with artists, educators, pedagogues and other interested professionals involved in the upbringing of children of the early age is developed. The aim is to empower the adults to use sound and music as a means to encourage the early development of a child. Thus the research and creative experiences of the project can enter the educational practice.
A detailed description of the process can be seen in the BAZAART's book (in Serbian) "Welcome of the World".
The Learning Dispositions
Nevena Mitranić, MA, pedagogue, Assistant at the Department of Preschool Pedagogy, Faculty of Philosophy, University of Belgrade
In our project, given the selected age of the children whom the project addresses (3-5 years of age), the pedagogical focus is on the development of Learning Dispositions – the abilities of a child engaged in learning processes. Basic Learning Dispositions are: Curiosity, Courage, Perseverance, Critical Thinking, Creativity and Sensitivity for others. The sequence of the learning dispositions suggests the concept for artistic creation, so it would conform with the needs of the audience at very early age.
To access the Learning Dispositions: 2.5.2.3 THY LEARNING DISPOSITIONS ENG LEX
The narrative „Welcome of the World“
Bogdan Španjević, dramaturge
Departing from the structure based on learning dispositions, and in close collaboration with a pedagogue, a dramaturgue-consultant and an art director, a playwrite developed an open narrative on the theme "Welcome of the World".
The main character is the Wind who leads the children through various situations – from those which are pleasant and fun, through those which are unexpected, to the ones which are risky and dangerous – inviting them to be curious, brave, persistent, critical, creative and sensitive to others.
To read the open narrative "Welcome of the World": 2.5.2.4 ART BOGDAN SPANJEVIC WOW Script ENG LEX
The music composition „Welcome of the World“
Irena Popović Dragović, composer
The proposed narrative has set a task to the composer to create music that encourages the learning dispositions. The purpose of this artwork is to stimulate active and attentive listening, and in order to offer this opportunity to as many children as possible, the score is recorded and reproduced on AIR channel, and also used in creative work with preschool children.
To listen to the musical composition "Welcome of the World": https://b-air.infinity.radio/en/sound-art-plus/music/composition-welcome-of-the-world/
The theatre play "WOW!"
Miha Golob, theatre director
The theatre show "WOW!" was created with an aim of promoting the pedagogical power of art in the development of the child. At the core of the concept lies the cooperation of pedagogues and artists on the development of artistic content intended for the audience of early age, with the aim of establishing and strengthening the role of art in the upbringing and education of young generations and providing support to cultural professionals for intersectoral cooperation.
Specifically, as does the program, the show supports an open, active, exploratory attitude of a child between the ages of 3 and 5, towards the world.
Following the contemporary music composition by Irena Popović and the poetic narrative by Bogdan Španjević, this show brings the concept "Welcome of the World" to theatrical expression.
The show is a coproduction of BAZAART and the Little Theatre "Duško Radović" in Belgrade, Serbia.
To read the authors' statements: 2.5.2.8 ART MIHA GOLOB About WOW ENG LEX
The radio play "Welcome of the World"
Sunčica Milosavljević, theatre and radio director
Building upon the metaphor of a journey as a growing-up process, the scriptwriter Bogdan Španjević developed a radio play for young listeners. A sequence of scenes takes the listeners through diverse stimulating situations and places which the Wind and a child visit in their quest for the secret of growing-up. During the journey, the little Wind discovers the key qualities that enable a child – also a wind-child – to grow-up. He realises the importance of being curious, courageous, persistent, mindful, creative and sensitive for others.
The radio play was written in verse, inviting the sound artists to compose songs, soundscapes and other acoustic elements of the narration.
The radio play is performed live by the actor and musician Eldar Zupčević and the sound designer and also a musician Siniša Marčeta.
To read the writer's statement: 2.5.2.9 THY BOGDAN SPANJEVIC Dramaturgy RadioPlay ENG LEX
To read the radio play (in Serbian): UPDATE 14 - Radio drama BOGDAN
The drama pedagogy workshop "WOW!"
Nataša Milojević and Sunčica Milosavljević, drama pedagogues
The theatre performance entails also the pre-show and post-show drama workshops for children audiences. The workshop before the show prepares children for experiencing theatre and helps them recognise the learning dispositions in the theatrical fabric, while the workshop after the show supports children to connect those key qualities with their own experiences and inner ways of interpreting and imagining the world.
Designed by drama pedagogues from BAZAART, the scenario can be used also in educational contexts, by preschool and school teachers who wish to enhance the development of learning dispositions of children and students.
To read the scenario of the post-show drama workshop in English: 2.5.2.8.1 ART NATASA SUNC DramaWorkshop Scenario WOW ENG LEX
The visual arts workshop "Welcome of the World"
Ljubica Mladenović, visual arts pedagogue, Art Studio Artina
Another creative activity based on the music composed by Irena Popović was a visual arts workshop for children 6 to 9 years of age. With this workshop, we tested if the artistic music could enhance the active/attentive listening, the meaning-making processes and in general the holistic development of children in early grades of elementary school (not only of the preschoolers), using visual arts as a medium. The creative drawing and painting workshops were conducted by the visual arts pedagogue Ljubica Mladenović and the experiences and results confirmed the assumption of the effectiveness of the music in learning and development of this age group too. The program was implemented during the Festival of Radio Play for Children and Youth in Belgrade.
The musical-dance workshop-performance "Discovering the World"
Nataša Milojević, drama and dance pedagogue
On the basis of the musical story, music and dance pedagogues created the interactive format for children in the medium of creative movement. The children listened actively and attentively to the contemporary artistic music which they interpreted in their own way and the pedagogues led them through the meaning-making process through movement and contemporary dance expression. The creative movement lab was monitored by parents, teachers and the program pedagogical team.
The workshop-performance was also used to evaluate the entire program, through an action research approach (a detailed description of the evaluation procedure can be seen in the BAZAART's book "Welcome of the World" / in Serbian: )
To read the scenario of the creative musical-dance workshop in English: 2.5.2.11 THY NATAŠA MILOJEVIC Creative Movement ENG LEX
