First African Circus Arts Festival 2015

Partner: Fekat Circus – Sector: Sensitization – Country: Ethiopia – Place: Addis Ababa – Year: 2015 – Project Status: Concluded – Type: Partnership with AMG

THE PROJECT IN SUMMARY

Support to the organization of the first African Circus Arts Festival in Addis Ababa to attract attention to circus arts in Africa.

THE PROJECT IN DETAIL

Objectives

Support to the organization of the first African Circus Arts Festival in Addis Ababa to attract attention to circus arts in Africa, and highlight their artistic value and potential impact on social, cultural and economic development; promote cultural exchanges between circus associations on the African continent.

Beneficiairies

Activities

In November 2015, the Fekat Circus organizes the First African Circus Arts Festival in Addis Ababa, the first of its kind in Africa.

The Festival is one of nine projects chosen in 2014 by UNESCO (from about 700 submissions) under the auspices of the International Fund for the Promotion of Culture (IFPC).

Eight of the most active African circus associations participate in the Festival: Alea des possibile (Madagascar); Cirque Faso (Burkina Faso); Fekat Circus (Ethiopia); Sarakasi (Kenya); Sencirk (Senegal); Actionarte (South Africa), Debre Brahan (Ethiopia); Circus Zambia (Zambia). Also the Slum Drummers, a group of drummers coming from Nairobi, Kenya, take part to the festival.

More than fifty young circus artists from all over Africa will have the chance to exhibit their talent, express themselves and their rich artistic and cultural patrimony, meet others and compare artistic and social approaches.

The artists that will be performing during the festival are, for the most part, young artists that come from contexts of marginalization who, through the arts, have found an opportunity to work and improve their lives.

The Festival programme foresees three days of artistic exhibitions during which each circus will perform its own show, along with two days of workshops, with the presentation and exchange of artistic and social methodologies.

Partner