There was no press conference to spread the fourteenth edition of the Buenos Aires International Festival (FIBA)which organizes the Buenos Aires Ministry of Culture and that, for a couple of years, it is summery. For this reason, it is necessary to rely on the information sent by the organizers about the artistic meeting, which is full of figures. There it is reported that, for 10 days, in 50 venues between rooms and cultural spaces, unconventional sites and outdoor places, from all the communes of CABA, more than 1,500 artists on stage and there will be a total of 300 performances, activities and works in progress. It also indicates that, among theater proposals, music, dance and visual arts, both from the local and foreign scene, will be presented 17 international projects, 26 transnational, linking local artists with references from other latitudes, and 59 nationalin a selection that tries to reflect the vast independent culture of Buenos Aires and the local production of public and private entities.
As they affirm, this time “different axes such as federal integration, the gender perspective and theLGBTIQ+ diversity and inclusion policies, the development of sustainable communication and care for the environment through measures that contribute to the reduction of the CO2 footprint, technology as an ally of the culture that empowers and transforms it, and accessibility as a fundamental part of construction of a cultural event. Nothing less.
Other times
When reviewing the leafy programming scheduled by the theater critic Federico Irazábal, its artistic director since 2016, it is noted that FIBA mutated towards proposals more linked to experimentation and is no longer an exhibition space for established expressions of contemporary world performing art. Because the absence of prestigious international names such as those that all the editions had, from its inception in 1997 to 2015, is evident. It is enough to remember that thanks to this event, actors such as Vittorio Gassman and Steven Berkoff visited our city with their one-man shows, Milva gave recitals, the Kronos Quartet, Hanna Schygulla, Misia and Estrella Morente; we saw performances by Peter Brook, Bob Wilson, Christoph Marthaler, René Pollesch, Romeo Castellucci, Rodrigo García and Ivo van Hove; works by choreographers Trisha Brown, Gabriela Carrizo, Jan Fabre; and the companies of the Berliner Ensemble or Théâtre du Soleil appeared, and many more. Together, such a host of prestigious figures placed FIBA among the most outstanding events in Latin America.
Surely the current budgetary restrictions, the obsession with developing an endless grid of titles and events, and a certain limitation when searching, prevent devising an offer that should be focused on the most relevant rather than quantity.
Visitors
As a suggestion, we have prepared a guide that, perhaps, can help you choose what to see. On Friday, February 24, at 9:00 p.m., the opening will take place at the Cultural Center May 25 of Villa Urquiza, with “By Heart”, the work created, acted and directed by the Portuguese director Tiago Rodrigues. The interpreter teaches a poem to 10 people in the audience who are completely unaware of the text that they must memorize. Then, mixed stories emerge about the actor’s grandmother, writers, and book characters.
The closing will be on March 5 with two works. At the former Caseros de Parque Patricios Prison, which closed its doors in 2001, the Swiss director Christophe Frick will present the piece “Palmasola, a prison town” at 6:30 p.m. It deals with the homonymous penitentiary of Santa Cruz de la Sierra, in Bolivia, and reflects the survival strategies, dreams and nightmares of the inmates in the detention center of the same name. And at the Teatro Coliseo, at 3:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m., “Carbonio” will be presented, written and directed by Pier Lorenzo Pisano, belonging to the emblematic Piccolo Teatro di Milano. It tells the strange story of a man’s encounter with an extraterrestrial life form and serves as a springboard for a reflection on the predatory nature of humans, represented by the excitement surrounding the Voyager probe and the deep fear of meeting “others”. .
Another proposal to keep in mind is “Antigone, Interrupted” by Joan Clevillé, produced by Scottish Dance Theater for the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, which reimagines the Greek tragedy of Antigone through the body and voice of the performer.
Transnationals
They establish crosses between Argentine artists and creators from Germany, Brazil, Spain, Switzerland and Uruguay, among other countries. For example, the documentary theater show “[OTHER] Chinese” by New Zealand-born performer of Asian descent Alice Canton brings together a cast of non-actors from the Chinese community of Buenos Aires to tell their own stories on stage and examine the multiplicity of their identity. Meanwhile, “ La forêt, temps 1 d’À l’Est” de Nod”, offers a reflection on the physical and psychic limits, both intimate and political, that we share. It will have its local version thanks to the residency visit and collaboration between the Canadian company Nadère Arts Vivants and the National Contemporary Dance Company of Argentina.
local
For the first time, there will be a premiere fully co-produced with a Cordovan company, “La sapo” by Ignacio Tamagno, which is a kind of two-voice poem about death and the present. As usual, in addition to the official entities, some Buenos Aires alternative venues are part of the wide variety, and the Metropolitan Sura and the Astros on Corrientes Avenue are added. There will be seen the well-known “Traducción (Exhibit 8)” by Matías Feldman, which investigates the problems of translation, and also those of interpretation, and “Inferno” by and with the playwright, director and film actor and Rafael Spregelburd Theater, a wild comedy about guilt, betrayal, copying and fraud. Meanwhile, at the San Martín, “Los años” by Mariano Pensotti will be offered, the story of the same person at two very different moments in his life, when he is 30 years old, in 2020, and when he is 60, in 2050.
Tickets
The schedule, free ticket booking links and the digital catalog will be found on the website of the City of Buenos Aires. You must book in advance online, two days before each show, from 2:00 p.m. Only one ticket per person and performance may be requested.
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