The start of the theatre season in October coincides with a new edition of the Festival de Otoño a Primavera (Autumn to Spring Festival) organised by the Comunidad de Madrid (Autonomous Region of Madrid). This year’s edition brings to the Madrid Region the most interesting projects on the national and international performing arts scene in a programme that runs until June 2015.
For this 32nd edition, the Festival de Otoño a Primavera has prepared a multidisciplinary programme in which theatre, contemporary dance, music, flamenco, puppetry and monologues all fit, engaging not only the great names of the world’s scenic arts, but also young creators who are making an impact on the current artistic panorama. The Festival also boasts a varied programme of parallel activities and a few surprises which will be announced through the new festival website: www.madrid.org/fop.
The 32nd Festival de Otoño en Primavera will present a total of 9 Spanish premieres, plus 5 in the Madrid Autonomous Region and one in the capital city. The productions come from Canada, Italy, France, Belgium, United Kingdom and Spain. In this 32nd edition, the venues that have regularly housed the Festival’s shows (Teatros del Canal, Teatro de la Abadía, Sala Cuarta Pared and Teatro Pradillo) will be complemented by three new alternative venues: the Teatro del Barrio, Nave 73 and Sala Mirador. These have been added to enhance the eclectic outlook of the Festival de Otoño a Primavera, true to its aim of supporting not only large format shows but also pieces of medium and small format, as well as a wide range of styles from avant-garde projects to great classics of world theatre. The common factor is their high quality.
Peter Brook, one of the great names of modern theatre, will be in charge of inaugurating the Festival de Otoño a Primavera hand in hand with his “accomplice” of 40 years Marie-Hélène Estienne. They both sign and co-direct The Valley of Astonishment, running at the Teatros del Canal of the Comunidad de Madrid from October 23rd to 26th.
Towards the end of October, the prestigious Belgian creator and performer Josse De Pauw and the Kris Defoort jazz trio will move us to the rhythm of jazz in the monologue An Old Monk, a piece freely inspired by the bebop genius Thelonious Monk. And the Grand Dame of Folk Music, Marianne Faithfull, celebrating her 50 years of career in 2014 with her new album Give My Love to London, will arrive at the Festival in December at the Teatros del Canal as part of her world tour.
Spanish choreographers Juan Kruz Díaz de Garaio Esnaola and Antonio Ruz will take turns at the roles of director and performer in two solo performances that form their most recent encounter onstage, the poetic Vaivén. Meanwhile, Israel Galván comes back to the Madrid stage in January to dance fla.co.men, a piece in which he revisits the great creations of his unique career through the element common to all of them: music.
Towards the end of January it will be the turn of the Belgian contemporary production centre CAMPO, and its humorously acidic exploration of the mundane A Coming Community. In February, Blind Summit Theatre will once again elevate puppet theatre to the category of grand art with its presentation of The Table at the La Abadía theatre. The strength of Avant-garde theatre will be represented by the British company Forced Entertainment and the Spanish premiere of its futuristic Tomorrow’s Parties.
As for Robert Lepage, he will revisit his celebrated Needles and Opium more than 20 years after its premiere, displaying humour, poetry and an ingenious use of technology. French director George Lavaudant will offer a purified and abbreviated rendering of the absolute classic Cyrano de Bergerac in an intimate and elegant interpretation of the play with actor Patrick Pineau very successful as the lead role.
Two productions that caused a great stir at their presentation during the Edinburgh Fringe Festival two years ago will form part of the 32nd edition of the Festival in Madrid. The first is La Merda, an intelligent, stark and captivating monologue performed by Italian actress Silvia Gallerano. The second is Big Mouth, a production that explores the art of oratory, delivered in a stunning whirlwind performance by the Belgian Valentijn Dhaenens. In addition, director, playwright, choreographer and dancer Claudia Faci will give yet another turn of the screw to Strindberg’s Creditors, teaming up with performers Pablo Messiez and Fernanda Orazi.
One of the most anticipated events of the theatre season is the return of Rodrigo Garcia to the Festival de Otoño a Primavera, in March 2015. His raging yet simultaneously tender and naked poetry will return in the form of his latest creation Daisy, ever true to his shocking and controversial style. Finally, the great muse of independent cinema Isabella Rossellini will explore the sexual life of wild creatures in the amusing and entertaining monologue Green Porno, Live on Stage, premiering in Spain in June 2015 as the resplendent closing show of the festival.
Once again, we invite you to enjoy yet another year of stage performances programmed in the 32nd edition of the Festival de Otoño a Primavera. We look forward to seeing you at the Madrid venues from October 23rd 2014 to June 7th 2015.
FESTIVAL DE OTOÑO A PRIMAVERA DE LA COMUNIDAD DE MADRID
(Autumn to Spring Festival of the Autonomous Region of Madrid)
Consejería de Empleo, Turismo y Cultura (Department of Employment, Tourism and Culture)
Dirección General de Artes Escénicas, Música y Audiovisual
(Office of Musical, Audiovisual and Performing Arts)
Ariel Goldenberg
Paula Foulkes
Mar López
Erinia Vicente
Pilar Estrela
Douglas McNicol
Gema Rollón
Carlos Malpartida
ODM
Consejería de Empleo, Turismo y Cultura
C/ Alcalá, 31, 28014, Madrid
fop@teatroscanal.com