The artistic co-director Àngela Jaume and the coordinator and manager Aina Quintana from Sa Xerxa de Teatre attended the Encuentros Escena Joven in Pamplona on the 23rd and 24th of January. These meetings, organized by Punto Gunea, were framed within their Latxa project.”
During these days, our two workers have been accompanied by other professionals from the performing arts sector from all over the state. In fact, colleagues from La Rous company, Mostra d’Igualada, the professional association Teatre per a Tots els Públics, Ultramarinos de Lucas company, the Generalitat de Catalunya, and others, have also attended the Encuentros.
The meetings have consisted of a series of training and informational sessions for professionals in the theatrical circuit. To begin with, the first activity was a roundtable discussion with emerging young talents from Navarra. The four individuals from Navarra shared their experience and professional projects within the field of performing arts, focusing on the needs, concerns, and perspectives of young professionals in the sector. From this, interesting reflections arose that initiated a very enriching debate among the participants.
The second session was led by José Diego Ramírez and Enrique Torre, who spoke about Artificial Intelligence in the world of performing arts, a topic currently on the agenda. AI facilitates processes in the world of theater, especially in the context of management, and helps reduce the time for certain tasks. As they mentioned, there seems to be no debate on this, but this new technology enters ethical questioning when AI is applied in creative processes.
In the sessions of the Encuentros Escena Joven, there was also space for informal debate. In a more relaxed atmosphere, with a cup of coffee in hand, professionals in the performing arts were able to reflect on the issues discussed in the first two sessions. On this occasion, all participating entities shared their willingness to include and involve young people in the theatrical circuit, establishing ties and collaborations to contribute jointly in this direction.
The second day began with a colloquium featuring Laura Bové, the Performing Arts Technician from the Cultural Promotion Subdirectorate of the Department of Culture of the Generalitat; Antonio Canovas from the Teatre de Màlaga, and David Lainez from the organizing entity Punto Gunea. The three speakers lead projects for managing young audiences in performing arts, and according to Àngela and Aina, it was truly inspiring to hear them share their experiences. Moreover, they provided a very diverse knowledge as they have worked in quite heterogeneous areas: in theater companies, public administration, private initiatives, and more.
Next, it was the turn of Eva Ferré from the Festival Z, Jacinto Gómez from Encuentros Te Veo, and Ramón Giné from La Mostra d’Igualada, who explained their festivals, all closely tied to the young audience. Finally, the last session focused on the creation of new audiences and the artistic growth of theater. To address this, Manuel González from the Feria Teatro de Castilla y León, Ramoni López from the Red de Teatros de Navarra, and Juan Francisco García, former director of the Festival and Teatro Villa de Molina, spoke about it.
After listening to and being able to debate with so many professionals in the sector, Àngela and Aina came out with a lot of enthusiasm to work on how to bring performing arts closer to the youth; in our case, to that of the Balearic Islands.” In addition, after listening to all the reflections from the speakers and colleagues at the Encuentros, Sa Xerxa is already working to open doors and be more accessible to emerging professionals in the theatrical circuit.
The two days of sessions have been a space full of communication and sector analysis that has fostered the birth of new projects and ways of working. For that reason, we appreciate the invitation from Punto Gunea. We will continue to attend the Encuentros Escena Joven to continue establishing pathways to theater for the younger generations and to address the audience of the future because they are, ultimately, the present.
As always, we are open to listen, learn, and do. That’s why we are here, isn’t it?
