Be your own live-act!
Mach's dir selbst!

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The Playground Association was founded in 2001 as an charitable association for socialwork, youth- culture & exchange and is registrated in Frankfurt am Main/Germany.

We are doing workshops and events using juggling, music, arts, fotography and film as a tool of integration. The Playground is doing projects for kids&people from different backgrounds and with different abilities to play together and to enjoy.
The Playground provides instruments and creates a space which animates to play, to learn, to experiment, to create, to experience yourself...Let it flow!

For actual Playground Projects read our News

Playgroundproductions
Platform to present/release our music & films projects


The Story of the Playground & Past Projects

The Playground Collective was born
1998 in the Housing Project Michael Barrax in Frankfurt am Main as a performance and music project, to teach each other by principles of “learning by doing”.

After the eviction of Michael Barrax the Playground Association moved to Prowokulta/Prozwo Community on Frankfurter Berg, an international suburbian housing scheme with many families and kids.

The Playground´s origin is in the techno & party in the late ninties, setting up playgrounds at festivals. From 1999 on we were touring to Ex Yugoslavian Countries to make playgrounds in camps with socially disadvantaged and war-traumatised children. Also we were involved multiethnical festivals, workshops,events and cultural exchange...

such as

Crossing Bridges Festivals (2001/2002)
Crossing Bridges Tour (2005/2006)
2 Wheels 4 change (Poland&Serbia, 2012).
We have been cooperated with Balkan Sunflowers in Prishtina (2008/9) and Seeds of Change (Kosovo 2012/2013)


Playground Activities in Ex Yugoslavia have been financially supported by private donations and by the “department of youth” in Frankfurt, which nowadays also supports our Holiday Camp for Singlefamilies in Croatia (Frankfurt am Meer )

Since 2008 Playground Projects are mainly focused on kindergardens and schools in the region of Frankfurt am Main and some festivals in the region.
As
musicians, artists, students and socialworkers we try to make our living by those jobs, while we are growing up our kids, studying and being active in our communities.


The Playground was involved in the international Gathering of the Tribes Festival (2005-2008)
This festival was not only promoting a colourfull music programm , but also workshops, discussions and films about the issue "Music ,Mind and Politics".

As all artists were playing mainly for travelling expenses, the Playground could donate
2000 Euros to a Project with social disadvantaged kids in Kosovo.

 


On an international level the Playground e.V. is a tool and platform for networking and cooperation.
The aim is, to support and bring together groups and individuals, who are doing similar projects connected with
-juggling & music
-festivals and performance camps
-and international cultural exchange projects.


We are still open for participating in projects in the balkan region and for working with refugees in Germany/Frankfurt Region.

For setting up those Projects and for financial support/donations write to

contact (AT) theplayground.de

 

 

 

Biography

1998-1999
Playground starts to develope as a group amd collective, doing juggling playgrounds, setting up fireshows and a live-music programm.
participation in festivals, gigs in Berlin, Thessaloniki, Glasgow
first tour to festivals in Hungary and Croatia.
producing the CD “Be your own Live-Act”, a documentary about Michael Barrax Community and Playground Tours.

200o
1. Playground Tour to Mazedonia & Kosova/o, working in camps and communities with socially disadvantaged children
small financial support by Department of Youth Frankfurt, a TV Show and private investments.

2001
Playground e.V. was founded

Production of the CD Compilation Holidays in Kosovo
with support of Department of Science and Arts in Frankfurt.

Participation in Crossing Bridges Festival 1 in Pec/Peje im Kosovo,
financially supported by Department of Youth/Department for political education in Frankfurt http://www.theplayground.de/crossingbridges.htm
25 min Documentary on ZDF. German Television Programm

August/September 2002
-Coorganisation of Crossing Bridges Festival 2 (three days) in Peje, Kosova,
- organisation and coordination of a one week Live Recording Studio in the old cinema of the city of Pec/Peje, where bands and musicians coming from different places were recorded.
resulting CD Production: Music Crossing Bridges, (re)mixed in Sophia.
The Participation in Crossing Bridges 2 has been finanzially supported by Department of Youth Frankfurt.

2003-2005
Participation in Underwater-Overground Festival in Croatia:
setting up a Juggling Playground, Workshops, Live-Act
in Cooperation with ATAC/Autonom Youth & Cultural Center Zagreb and Stani Pani Kollektiv Belgrad

Oktober 2005:
3 Weeks Kosovotour : Working with socially disadvantaged children in Plementina, Gracanica, Prishtina, Mitrovica und Peje, public Juggling Playground in Prishtina

November 2005
Crossing Bridges Festival in Frankfurt with guests from Belgrad (Stani Pani Kollektiv, Queer Belgrad) and Prishtina (Urban FM), opening panel with presentation and discussion, presentation of documentary films, music…
Playground Tour and Festival 2005 financially supported by Department of Youth Frankfurt.

September 2006
4 Weeks Kosova-Tour in cooperation with Balkan Sunflowers: working several days with socially disadvantaged children and youth mainly in Serbian and Roma enclaves; public Playground in the city of Prishtina, documentary filmproduction with Neta & Sevdje Kastrati from Crossing Bridges Productions

April 2006
Coorganisation of Gathering of the Tribes Festival in Frankfurt
(Milchsackgelände) about 1200 international guests and artists

Mai 2006
Coorganisation of Ladyfest Frankfurt (4 days of lectures, workshops, diskussions, concerts, parties, films)
1 year preparation time with various meetings and event!
grant by Department for Womens´issues (Frauenreferat), Department for Science and Arts , Department for Multiculture in Frankfurt.

Januar 2007
”Welcome to Bill Clinton Boullevard”
small event in Frankfurt, showing films from Crossing Bridges Production Prishtina,
Premiere: Playground Tour 2006 Documentary film
In Coop. Mit SEKs, Stadtteilinitiative Koblenzer Strasse

April 2007
Preparation of Gathering of the Tribes 6-9 th April 2007

-Multiethnical Summer Performance Camp in Kosova/o

Pedagogical projects in/around Frankfurt
-juggling workshops at Kurt Schumacher School in Karben
- setting up music programms for Kindergartens
-School Projects in cooperation with Alice e.V. “the drug & culture project”, informations about drugs and drug addictions.

2007 First Music projects in Kindergardens

2008 Beach am Berg (Beach Holidays Project at Youth Center at Frankfurter Berg

2009 Schöner Leben am Frankfurter Berg(Sitzschlange)

2011 Picknick Kreativ! (Save the Musepark).

2011,2012, 2013 "Frankfurt am Meer" Holidays for single families in Croatia (Island of Murter)

2012 : 2 Wheels4 Change Exchange Project (Poland/Serbia)

Adress&Contact

Playground e.V.
Prämäckerweg 10
60433 Frankfurt am Main

e-mail: contact @ theplayground.de

 

Head of Playground Association 2012
Conni Maly, Keiko Schmitt, Katja Rumpel, Tania Felske,Stefan Ludley, Michael Jencik

President of Honour: Scott Fair

 

Playground Bank Account:
Playground e.V.
KTO 602 669 5100
BLZ 43060967
GLS Bank

Donations to support our work and projects are Welcome!
We can offer receits too!