The fifth annual Festival Internacional de Teatro in April will see the Venezuelan capital Caracas come alive with a series of world-class theatre productions.
The festival brings together international theatre companies from Brazil, France, Italy, Spain, Argentina, Bolivia and Nicaragua for the 16-day cultural event. There is also a strong emphasis on local theatre companies, with community based artistic groups coming from almost every state of the country.
Since its inception in 2011, the festival has grown in numbers each year, and 2016 promises to be the largest yet. Hundreds of thousands of people are expected to descend upon the capital, to watch acts in venues and public spaces across the capital.
As well as more traditional theatre productions, the festival will see a mixture of circus performances, parades, artistic workshops, exhibits, dance and music productions and street performances. There will also be a series of over 800 children’s workshops and thousands of activities for adults to get involved.
In the past, the event has been tied with the renovation and rejuvenation of a number of venues including the public theatres; La Vega, Alameda and Bolivar. Public spaces previously used included Plaza Diego Ibarra, Bulevar César Rengifo, Museum Square, Parque Los Caobos and Paseo nationality.
As well as promoted cultural and artistic expressions, the event’s focus is the promotion of tolerance, peace and co-existence.
While venues were once limited to the middle-class and richer districts of eastern Caracas, the festival now uses spaces across the entire capital. To make the event as inclusive as possible and accessible to those from all economic backgrounds, tickets are either free or being offered at the subsidised rate.
With a push to put Venezuela on the international stage for art and culture, the festival joins other annual events including the International Film Festival of Caracas and Venezuela International Book Fair.
President Nicolas Maduro vision is clear. After the third annual Festival Internacional de Teatro he said “Creating culture, sharing in a discipline such as theatre, which is a synthesis of literature, poetry and musical expression – that’s the Venezuela we want, filled with peace and a youthful outlook.” He added that the festival was “without excluding anything or anyone, theatre that is democratic and free”.
To find out more information or see photos from the last years’ festival visit
http://www.fundarte.gob.ve/festivales/festival-de-teatro-de-caracas.htm
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