We wanted to take the opportunity of 2022 drawing to a close to look back on a rich year of activities and events for ICAF, as well as looking forward to the fast-paced and exhilarating months that lie ahead of us.
The past twelve months have seen many important relation-building trips for the ICAF team. These included a visit to Porto to meet with Mexe Festival and Festival FAACCC and form the grounding for important future working collaborations. Moreover, ICAF Advisor, Eugene van Erven, travelled to Barcelona to view “La Gata Perduda” community opera, as well to Budel to experience Big hART’s European tour, and, finally, ICAF Assistant Amy visited Buffer Fringe Festival in Nicosia, Cyprus to get a better understanding of the context in which the festival is operating.
Alongside this we have also been strengthening our international connections and collaborations, firstly with Drama Box Company in Singapore, as our first ICAF Hub, and secondly with Buffer Fringe Festival as this year’s selected Festival Thinking Partners. Finally, we successfully produced another compelling edition of our national festival ICAF NWE MKRS, showcasing the work of emerging, homegrown community arts makers.
In the coming months, all our focus and energy will be honed in on producing the finishing touches to a spectacular festival that will make the long wait – since 2017 – very much worth it. We look forward to sharing this moment with you on 29th March in Rotterdam.