Press releases

Tàrrega, 29 April 2020. In spite of the delay caused by the societal health situation associated with Covid-19, which has resulted in last-minute changes, FiraTàrrega presents its artistic guidance programme for the 2020 season. A programme which, in the organisation's view, is now needed more than ever to help restart a sector that has seen its activity paralysed, with considerable disruptions in the continuity of some artistic projects and threats to the viability of some festivals and exhibition spaces.

Up to 18 scenic creation projects form part of FiraTàrrega's 2020 Support for Creation programme. Through this programme, and for the past 10 years already, FiraTàrrega has had the explicit desire to stimulate and guide stage creation processes that contain an element of research and innovation. The organisation's structure puts itself at the service of the creators, who complete a working residency in Tàrrega or other partnering towns or cities to give shape and trajectory to their shows, made visible through a programme of activities and rehearsals open to the citizenry.

The companies selected in 2020 are: Aina Tur, Carla Farreny, Cia. Moveo, Cia. Pau Palaus, Eléctrico 28, Enmedio and Andrea Paz, Grandia / Martorell / Vilajuana, Haa Collective, Hands Down Circus (UK), Hermanas Picohueso, Íntims Produccions, Kamchàtka, La Industrial Teatrera, Magí Serra & Anamaria Klajnšček, Métrica bárbara, Rawscenography, Rui Paixão (PT) and Tombs Creatius.

New developments

Some important new developments in this year's edition are, first of all, the incorporation of forty coproduction partners who have joined FiraTàrrega to make these shows a reality. Among them, we can mention the festivals Grec, Eufònic, LEME (Portugal, Sismògraf or Al Carrer in Vilacans, the Mediterranean fair or venues like Roca Umbert, El Konvent in Berga, L'Estruch, El Graner, La Central del Circ or the Escorxador Theatre in Lleida, in addition to the municipal governments of Balaguer, Alpicat or La Bisbal d'Empordà. The goal is to generate a coproduction network to guarantee production in the best conditions during the process of creation and to construct a sustainable distribution network that publicises shows and helps build their commercial trajectories.

The second new development results from the signing of a collaborative agreement with the University of Barcelona, which will give a number of graduate students the chance to participate in a pilot project on training in talent management and production guidance, hosted by FiraTàrrega to bring an exterior view and strategic support to the companies included in the Support for Creation programme.

The third new development is the programming of non-theatrical activities, directed at the citizens of Tàrrega and related to the common themes emerging from the content of the shows selected. FiraTàrrega has charged one of the companies, Íntims Produccions, with analysing the themes and designing the activities. The result is that the selected shows share an interest in disciplines like artificial intelligence, memory, craft, rurality, and the coexistence between tradition and modernity, physical and virtual spaces, anonymity and social networks or dissidence. This "extended" programme will be embodied, when the circumstances allow it, by the production of a podcast on memory shared through social media, a ceramics workshop at Ondara School in Tàrrega and an internet jam to reflect on algorithms, artificial intelligence and dissidence in the contemporary society of control.

The artistic projects

Of the 18 projects selected, a total of 13 should form part of the 2020 FiraTàrrega programme and the other 5 will have a creative trajectory of 2 years and will be programmed for the 2021 edition of the event.

The first group includes: Aina Tur with Una galaxia de luciérnagas (A galaxy of fireflies), a monologue inspired by a violent experience in Latin America. Carla Farreny with Tour, a piece which reflects on the transmission of vocations and explores the common nexuses between ceramics and trapeze. The company Moveo, with the piece Echoes, a practical and playful reflection on social relationships in the public space. Eléctrico 28 with The Frame, which, after a two-year-long creative process, will bring its observations on the spectacle of urban life to the stage. Enmedio and Andrea Paz, with Fancy Fence, the show with a mobile device that symbolises a society dominated by fear. Grandia / Martorell / Vilajuana, with Acte de fe (Act of faith), a re-reading of the traditional religious song repertoire passed through the conceptual filter of the 20th century, in the form of a religious ceremony mediated by an artificially intelligent being. Hands Down Circus with Tape that. Two British artists who already completed their residence in Tàrrega in the month of March to begin to construct a street acrobatics piece, for all audiences, that explores how certain physical barriers and restrictions in the public space affect the way we communicate and relate to each other. Íntims Produccions, with Èter Brota, an allegory, a tale that breaks away from the dominant logic. A wordless dramaturgy that aims to capture the universe's grandeur and our smallness. La Industrial Teatrera with Herència (Inheritance), a street clown show that will make us think about the world we are leaving to future generations. Magí Serra and Anamaria Klajnšček, with Cossoc, a street dance duet about the complexity and simplicity of personal relationships. Métrica bárbara with De una en una (One by one), which combines dance, visual theatre and objects to construct visual and sound landscapes with movements characterised by physical work and repeated efforts. Rawscenography, with Espai reservat (Space reserved), a series of microarchitectures spread throughout the public space which instigate a questioning on people's willingness to surrender their privileges. Rui Paixão, with Huaxia, inspired by this Portuguese artist's experience in China, with the Cirque du Soleil, a look at the urban space to debate, with audience involvement, on issues that affect contemporary life.

As for long-term processes set to materialise in 2021, we find the company Pau Palaus, with Zloty Tulipan, a show based on contemporary clowning, gestural theatre, improvisation and live music. Haa Collective, with Picaderø, an interactive experience based on installation, performance, contemporary circus, sound and dance drawn from the interaction between a performer and sound artist. Hermanas Picohueso, with P-Acte Idiota (P-Idiot Act), who return to Tàrrega with a project inspired by the anarchist Hackim Bey with the goal of generating a communal space in which the audience and performers create their own pirate utopia. Kamchàtka, with Alter, delving into human migrations and audience interaction based on the ritual of sharing a meal. And Tombs Creatius, with Secrets, a search for the creation of an experimental street show based on a new format halfway between a game collection and fair sideshow.

2020 Edition of FiraTàrrega

On another note, the organisation is operating under the assumption that it will be possible to hold the 2020 edition of FiraTàrrega, whether on the expected dates -from 10 to 13 September- even while maintaining some mobility restrictions, or with the alternative of moving the event to dates to be determined and including a digital professional component and, if possible, in-person artistic activity on a date to be determined. The final decision will be made in the next few days and announced in a timely fashion.