Culture Helps was a community-based cultural support initiative designed for Ukrainian refugees in Lithuania, with particular focus on women and children.
The project used Playback Theatre as a trauma-informed artistic methodology to create safe spaces for storytelling, emotional processing, and social reconnection.
At a time of prolonged displacement and uncertainty, the project addressed not only cultural integration, but psychological resilience and community rebuilding.
Objectives
- Provide safe dialogic spaces for refugees through applied theatre
- Reduce social isolation among displaced women and children
- Support emotional expression and collective reflection
- Strengthen connection between Ukrainian and Lithuanian communities
- Demonstrate the role of culture as psychosocial support
Activities
- 5 professional Playback Theatre performances
- Facilitated audience dialogue and reflection sessions
- Community tea gatherings after each performance
- Targeted outreach to refugee networks
- Collaboration with local cultural institutions
Each event was structured as a ritual space:
Listening → Performance → Reflection → Informal community gathering.
Methodology
The project was built on:
- Trauma-informed facilitation
- Playback Theatre methodology
- Non-formal education principles
- Community-based engagement
- Participatory cultural practice
The format allowed participants not only to witness performances but to become storytellers — sharing real-life experiences that were transformed into theatre on the spot.
Impact
- Hundreds of refugee participants engaged
- Strengthened peer-to-peer support networks
- Increased visibility of Ukrainian voices in Lithuanian cultural space
- Demonstrated arts-based integration practices for policymakers and institutions
The project reinforced Prosperis’ position as a trusted cultural actor working at the intersection of art, integration, and psychosocial support.
