The idea of a reserarch residency for young music theatre artists arose during the pandemic. The sudden radical restriction in terms of international exchange, guest performances and collaborations gave rise to the plan to give one artist at a time the opportunity to come to Switzerland for a month and build up a network within this time.

We offer two residencies of one month each (November & January) at Atélier Mondial Basel.
During the stay, the Atélier Mondial Basel acts as host, taking care of the welcome, the «day-to-day» issues and the administration. As Gare du Nord, we feel responsible for connecting the artist:in with members of the Swiss Music Theatre Network in Basel, Zurich, Geneva, Bern and Lucerne. We organise meetings, e.g. with members of the music academies, the Basel Theatre, as well as with various ensembles working in the field of contemporary music theatre.

The artists have the opportunity to attend all performances and concerts at the Gare du Nord. The artists receive a GA for the month so that they can travel throughout Switzerland to visit productions or festivals outside Basel.
The idea is to offer a maximum of contacts that can be helpful for international collaborations in the long run. Should the idea of a new production with a Swiss ensemble arise during the residency, there is the possibility of applying for a second residency to continue working on the idea. In this case, the Swiss ensemble would have to actively support this.

However, there is no obligation to create or present a production during the residency. The artists should learn as much as possible about the Swiss music theatre scene and - after their return - spread the contacts in their own network.