Putting on a play in the nine languages taught at CESEM. This was the challenge put before the students by the professors of the NEOMA language centre. Renewing and invigorating language teaching by having the learners take an active role in it is one of their beliefs.

The special feature of NEOMA’s CESEM programme is its multicultural emphasis. Language and culture play a central role in the programme. With their sights set on international management careers, the programme’s students are taught to develop and grow in culturally diverse and rich personal and professional contexts.

Raising awareness through theatre techniques and the relationship with the working world

“Public speaking is one of the most valued soft skills in companies and one of the skills most sought after by recruiters. Giving presentations in different languages is one of the daily functions in the numerous positions that our students will hold in the future, so much so that possessing confident oral skills is an essential element of the education and development of our students. This will help them develop their talents, which they can use throughout their entire professional career”, said Naomi Vallejo, professor of languages, on the initiative of the project.

A project celebrating the multilingualism of the CESEM

This ambitious project stems from the desire to promote multilingualism and inter-culturalism through practical and creative experiences. The project involves putting on a play in the nine languages taught in the CESEM programme without using subtitles and doing it in such a way that an audience that does not speak all these languages can understand it.

“The story of two pen pals, Kate and Simon, takes us through four decades with music and images as supporting elements and keeps us on the edge of our seats with the eternal question: will they end up getting together and experiencing a life of love? It’s a universal story, so it is perfect for our CESEM students to play out because they embody the world and its multicultural dimensions”, said Jacqui Seymour, professor of languages at NEOMA and director of the play.

To achieve this experience, professors of the English, German, Spanish, Chinese and Italian languages along with Russian students worked together to adapt and translate the original story in order to include all the languages spoken at CESEM.

The challenge: performing the play loosely adapted from the original work Between the Lines, by J.F. Defives, in March on the Reims campus for an audience of school students and employees who were won over and impressed by the talented CESEM students.