Organizer Information
Bethlen Square Theater (Bethlen Téri Színház) is a multidisciplinary, experimental performing arts center located on Bethlen Gábor Square in Budapest's 7th district, in the historic former "Chicago" neighborhood. Renamed the Bethlen Theater in 2012 after previously operating under that name before its closure in 1937, it had functioned as a dance theatre for over 15 years before becoming a host and production theatre. The theater's programming spans prose performances, dance, children's puppet theatre, cabaret, dance circus, visual theatre, improvisation, and folk performances, organized in the spirit of "total art" and centered on involving contemporary artists without genre restrictions.
The theater participates in several international initiatives, including the OASis project described below. OASis (Open Art Spaces in Synergy) is a three-year (2024–2027) European project co-funded by the Creative Europe programme, implemented by a consortium of 14 institutions — including NGOs, cultural organizations, municipalities, and a university — aimed at making art more accessible by building a network of open, interdisciplinary creative spaces across 10 countries. This Mátra residency is Bethlen Square Theater's second OASis residency, following a first edition held in the theater's own foyer in Budapest.
Title & Description
OASis Camping Residency — Mátra Hiking Camp (Second OASis Residency, Autumn 2026)
Bethlen Square Theater invites artists to leave the urban environment behind and spend a 15-day residency at a former hiking campground in the Mátra mountains, co-creating a temporary artistic ecosystem there. The residency's central question is how a disused hiking campground can become a cultural oasis, and how such an off-site, nature-based residency can stay meaningfully connected to a downtown theater. Participants are not asked to produce finished works, but to develop process-based, collaborative proposals that reimagine the campsite itself — its tents, paths, and communal areas — as an artistic, social, and cultural space, while also experimenting with hybrid presence so that remote participants can engage as active collaborators rather than mere observers.
Theme
Reimagining a disused hiking campground as a cultural and artistic space, exploring nature, slowness, presence, temporality, community living, and hybrid/remote participation under a "Total Presence" concept.
Categories
- Residency
- Performance
- Site-specific
- Installation
- Interdisciplinary Arts
- New Media
- Architecture
- Environment
Eligibility
- Open to individual artists and cultural practitioners working across disciplines in the cultural and creative sectors
- Applicants must be resident in a Creative Europe participating country (EU Member States and associated countries)
- Applicants must have an active artistic or creative practice
- Applicants must be able to work in English and in an international, collaborative environment
- 8 artists will be selected in total: 5 international and 3 Hungary-based
- Sought disciplines: visual arts/spatial practices, performing arts, storytelling/media, design/architecture, digital/hybrid practices
Program Benefits & Awards
- €1,300 gross artist fee per selected artist
- Accommodation at the Mátra campsite
- Shared materials budget and technical support
- Travel support of up to €200
Application Fee
None
Application Requirements
- Completed application form (linked in the call)
- Statement of intent, 4,000–6,000 characters, covering motivation, proposed way of working with the team and local community, artistic project ideas (including possible materials/production needs), and relevant skills, methods, and approaches to community-based co-creation
- Portfolio, website, or social media links showcasing prior artistic work
- Short bio or CV
- One high-quality photo with a visible face, for use in communications introducing the artists
How to Apply?
Online Application
Key Dates
- Application Deadline: 20 July 2026
- Open House Event: 2 July, 5 PM (CET)
- Online meeting 1: 18 August 2026
- Online meeting 2: 8 September 2026
- Residency period: 14–28 September 2026 (15 days)
Location
Mátra Hiking Camp, Mátra mountains, Hungary
Additional Details
- The site covers approximately 16,000 m², including around 800 m² of built structures, and can host 40–60 participants plus smaller festivals and gatherings
- The venue has been out of use for four years and many facilities are currently worn; the residency is not aimed at full renovation but at an organic, collective development process shaped by artists' real needs
- The residency involves collective living in nature: shared spaces, simple living conditions, and intensive collaboration are expected
- Evaluation criteria: artistic quality, contextual relevance, feasibility, and community engagement
- Shortlisted candidates from a related first-edition call were previously invited to a brief online interview; this second call does not state whether the same applies here
- Questions can be directed to szekelyborbala@bethlenszinhaz.hu