The Emperor’s New Clothes is an interdisciplinary course exploring truth, perception, and the power of narrative. Using drama, psychology, and music, participants are invited to question how stories — in media, politics, and everyday life — shape our sense of reality.

At its core, The Emperor’s New Clothes is about critical awareness: learning to recognise how information can be constructed, manipulated, and believed, and discovering how creativity and critical thinking can reveal what lies beneath the surface of a narrative.

Approach

This project combines dramatic practice, group discussion, and creative experimentation. Participants will explore Hans Christian Andersen’s fable The Emperor’s New Clothes as a conceptual framework to examine how truth and illusion operate in society — and within ourselves.

Sessions move between action and reflection, using performance, psychology, and musical expression to illuminate the mechanisms of persuasion, belief, and self-deception.

Sessions include:

• Dramatic re-imaginings of The Emperor’s New Clothes
• Improvisations exploring truth, lies, and group dynamics
• Discussions on media, perception, and the psychology of belief
• Creative exercises examining how narratives are constructed and spread
• Musical and rhythmic explorations of tension between appearance and reality

The structure is adaptable — the project can be shaped to fit different timeframes (from short sessions to multi-day intensives) and participant needs.

Themes

• Reality and Falsity: understanding how “truth” can be framed or distorted
• Narrative and Power: exploring who controls the story and why
• Media and Manipulation: questioning the sources we trust
• Psychology of Belief: why we accept falsehoods and resist change
• Artificial Intelligence and Misinformation: awareness of new tools for creating deception

Outcomes

By engaging with The Emperor’s New Clothes, participants gain tools to:
• Recognise the techniques used to shape perception and opinion
• Develop a critical attitude toward media and digital information
• Reflect on their own relationship to truth, authority, and conformity
• Use creative practice as a means of inquiry and resistance
• Foster awareness, curiosity, and independent thought in themselves and others

Format

The Emperor’s New Clothes can be delivered in a variety of formats, including:
• Half-day or full-day workshops
• Two-day intensives
• Multi-session programmes for schools or organisations

Each iteration maintains the same core aim: to empower participants to see beyond appearances — to question the narratives they encounter and to tell their own stories with clarity and integrity.

Next course date: Monday 15th June – Friday 19th June 2026 (flexible)
Location: Prague (CZ)