Festivals for a New Age with the International Presenting Commons on Friday 11 June 2021
Channel: HowlRound Theatre Commons
Date: 11/06/2021

The International Presenting Commons (IPC) in partnership with Global Pillow and HowlRound Theatre Commons presents Festivals for a New Age: Models of Responsiveness, Flexibility and Resistance livestreaming on the global, commons-based, peer produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Friday 11 June 2021 at 9:30-11:00 a.m. PDT (San Francisco, UTC -7) / 11:30 a.m. -1:00 p.m. CDT (Chicago, UTC -5) / 12:30-2:00 p.m. EDT (New York, UTC -4).
 
Festivals for a New Age: Models of Responsiveness, Flexibility and Resistance

Festivals for a New Age: Models of Responsiveness, Flexibility and Resistance will bring together U.S. based presenters and producers of international work and three global festival directors who will share how they are evolving festival models to respond to some of the most pressing existential, political, and social crises of our time. What can we learn from our colleagues’ experiences? How are we innovating our own international festival and presenting models in response to current conditions? How do we advance international cultural exchange in the US despite myriad challenges including present immigration policies, COVID-19 travel restrictions, and the climate crisis?

 

Featured topics and speakers include:

Deana Haggag, program officer in Arts and Culture at The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation will interview Kristy Edmunds, Executive and Artistic Director of UCLA’s Center for the Art of Performance. Deana and Kristy will kick off the event and speak about the necessity to evolve the platforms, structures, networks, policies, and practices of cultural exchange to address the lack of environmental, economic, aesthetic, and social sustainability of the present system.

Producing a Global Festival during Revolutionary Change
Carmen Romero, General Director of Santiago a Mil International Festival (Santiago, Chile) interviewed by Olga Garay-English, Independent Arts Consultant (Los Angeles, California). Through radical political upheaval of 2019 and beyond, Teatro a Mil has continued to mount a remarkable international festival, often incorporating works and programs addressing urgent political change. It has co-produced many works and some have been distributed globally.

Taking the Path of Most Resistance
Choreographer and director Faustin Linyekula (Kinsangi, Democratic Republic of the Congo), interviewed by Philip Bither, Director and Senior Curator of Performing Arts, Walker Art Center (Minneapolis, Minnesota) on resiliency and resistance drawn from a range of experiences: founding and directing against fierce odds his Studios Kabako in Kisangani, Democratic Republic of the Congo since 2006, touring his work to leading international festivals, and co-directing the Connexion Kin Festival (Kinshasa, 2009-2015), Biennial Artista na Cidade in Lisbon (2016) and Holland Festival (2019). A visionary and respected leader for contemporary performance forms, he has forged networks and collaborative systems across the African continent.

Localizing an International Festival in the Face of COVID and Climate Crises
Marnie Karmelita, Creative Director of TĀWHIRI festivals and experiences (Te Whanganui-a-Tara /Wellington, New Zealand) interviewed by Chris Lorway, Executive Director of Stanford Live and Bing Concert Hall (Stanford, California). In 2020, Marnie Karmelita expanded the curatorial structure of the festival to include three guest artist curators. This more inclusive curatorial structure featured both local and international artists examining the role of a global event embedded in community. One of these artist curators, Lemi Pontifasio - a Samoan director, dancer, designer, choreographer and activist - created a festival within a festival called Te Ata. This platform created an opportunity for young people to share the culture of the place where they live.

In closing, the event will feature a response from U.S. choreographer Kyle Abraham, who will share his perspectives on global cultural exchange as an acclaimed artist who tours internationally.

About the International Presenting Commons (IPC):

The International Presenting Commons (IPC) is an emergent, evolving, volunteer group of U.S.–based performing arts presenters and creative independent producers who have joined forces to keep international cultural exchange and engagement alive and vibrant now and into the future. IPC does this through advocacy, active learning, resource sharing, and collaboration among performing arts presenters, artists, producers, and funders, who work together to build more sustainable policies and funding models for the exchange of work around the world. The group’s mission is in service of its increasingly diverse communities throughout the country. IPC celebrates its role as part of a global cultural ecosystem and by partnering with artists and presenters from all over the world. Find out more here.
https://howlround.com/happenings/festivals-new-age-models-responsiveness-flexibility-and-resistance