People who live in Seda are quite diverse. They have an NGO “Cerības pakāpiens” through which they are organising different events and activities. But at the same time not everybody participates. So it’s an ongoing challenge to engage as many people as possible in this small village in Latvia. The local community consists of many different nationalities, people have various hobbies – taking care of local cats and building houses for them, gardening, creating stone sculptures, organising weekly sport activities, taking part in mass-view filming, hula hop dancing, crocheting and much more.
Even though the village is small, not everyone knows each other personally.
“Magic Carpets” project: Community theatre show “Neighbour from the Yellow House. Stories from Seda”
During the project, the people of Seda got closer to each other, met those with whom they hadn’t spoken or spent time together, and built new friendships. By making a full performance everyone had to go through different phases of the creative process, which built the bond between them even stronger, sparked creativity, belief that they can do great things together, and that they are not forgotten in the local region as a small and unique quiet town. After the project one community member revealed that he is so inspired that finally he is ready to publish his poems. Older participants were also happy about the company they gained for the future. Another amazing aspect is that participants of the residency were from different generations, starting from 9 to 90.
Number of community members included in the project: 20
Reasons for participating in the “Magic Carpets” project: Seda community participated in the project because of curiosity, to try something new and unexpected, to do something together, and for the town of Seda. The motivation was also to engage at least as spectators those local people who usually are skeptical or not so active in collective events – to show others what is possible if we work together.
“So as part of this event, our dream is to renovate this historic train station to create this wonderful place for gatherings,and relaxation, where local people can come together to spend a good time and it will also give us a improved environment. We would like to renovate the benches, and stations’ canopy (shed/roof), and clean from the bushes.
We also want to clean the pond that is here. This is a historic pond. It was a place where the water was gathered in case of a fire. Cleaning this pond would give a chance for local kids and teenagers in winter to spend their free time actively ice skating. And also for the older generation – to walk here and relax.”
Laura, Gunta, Guna, Minka, Anda, Nauris, Aleksandrs, Beāte, Diana, Lauris.