About Plum Yard
Plum Yard
Plum Yard is an old farmstead in Malovice (South Bohemia, near Vodňany) which dates back to the year 1868. It has been the seat of Continuo Theatre for twenty years, i.e. their home, workplace and background for their art productions. It is a base for regular summer site specific projects, workshops and meetings of artists from all over the world. It is a residence for theatre makers as well as artists from other branches. It is a theatre where people can see not only the performances of Continuo Theatre but also those of guest companies and groups. It is a school, it is a laboratory. In the last twenty years Plum Yard has been the place where Continuo has produced 25 own performances, about 400 young people from all over the world have made 19 site specific projects and several educational projects in cooperation with European theatre colleges have been realised.
About the renovation
The project of renovation and building a cultural and theatre space is unique for several reasons. Continuo Theatre is the only professional theatre working throughout its existence in a rural area. The project of Plum Yard is based on the Continuo´s long-time creative work and is combined with an original innovative programme of a cultural, artistic, residential and educational centre. The model has been inspired by similar projects abroad (Poland, France, Austria). However, the project of Continuo Theatre is unique and has no parallel in the Czech Republic. Within the renovation most of the historic buildings of the farmstead were maintained and fixed. The architectonic project of the renovation was based on the idea to use all the original usable material so that the unique character of the farmstead could be preserved. The theatrical space – a multifunctional hall with dimensions 12 x 18 x10 metres – was designed as a modern wooden building with open trussing and the inner yard as an open-air theatre with a gallery for an audience. The renovation of the buildings and construction of the new theatre hall were supported from the means of the European Regional Development Fund. The renovation was finished in June 2015.