As the 29th edition of the Sibiu International Theatre Festival - the largest so far - has come to an end, the "Radu Stanca" National Theatre Sibiu (TNRS) and its International Theatre Festival of Sibiu (FITS) have become members of Circostrada, the European network dedicated to contemporary circus and street performing arts. The decision was based on the important partnerships developed in recent years, as well as the creation of impressive co-productions with regional, national, and international partners.

The official announcement was made by Stephane Segreto-Aguilar, Head of International Development at ARTCENA and Coordinator of the Circostrada Network, on June 30, during the session he attended online at the Sibiu Show Exchange in the presence of Constantin Chiriac, President of FITS and General Director of TNRS.

Constantin Chiriac, President of FITS and Director of the Radu Stanca National Theater expressed his joy at becoming part of the Circostrada network:  "It is an honor for our Theatre and Festival to join the 127 members of the Circostrada and to share with them our common knowledge, experience, and values. Our new membership will be an excellent opportunity to develop this area in our country and encourage policymakers to include circus and street arts in their medium and long-term strategies, giving young artists the chance to have careers in Romania.”

Circostrada was created in 2003 with the main mission to promote the development and recognition of the performing arts at the international level. The network is represented by a European community of professionals, brought together by a set of common values and aspirations. It meets several times a year at events organized by its members.

The "Radu Stanca" National Theatre will contribute to the Circostrada calendar of events by hosting various network activities (including a future Circostrada annual meeting), inviting member organizations to the Sibiu Performance Exchange, and accepting possible new cooperative cultural projects for development.

The festival itself, whose theme was Beauty, was a great success this year, with an estimated daily attendance of 85,000 people coming to see the performances held in various spaces around Sibiu, from theatre halls to squares, streets, and even temples of worship.

The ten days of the festival were filled with over 800 various kinds of performances and artistic events: theater and puppet theater shows, circus acts, street performances, art installations, exhibitions, concerts, and more, put on by the more than 3,500 participants who arrived in Sibiu from 75 countries.

Dozens more special events took place, such as conferences and book launches with leading professionals in the fields of architecture, visual arts, and theater, as well as other creators, cultural facilitators, ambassadors, writers, journalists, critics, influencers,  and decision-makers.

This edition of FITS also recorded impressive figures in terms of online presence. For the first time ever, FITS partnered up with Tik Tok, broadcasting the first live theatre performances for users of the social media platform.

Over the festival's ten days, the hashtag #magiaFITS (the magic of FITS) garnered well over a million views on TikTok, with 150,000 users watching the five live broadcasts.

"It is the largest edition so far, but also the one that brings us - me and the whole Festival team - the greatest joy and satisfaction so far. We have seen people gathered together for the arts in crowds that are unbelievable to look at, breathing in unison, we have had the opportunity for memorable encounters that will build the premises for future FITS editions that we are already preparing. I thank our partners without whom this miracle would not be possible, the artists who have given us their grace, the team,  the community of Sibiu who welcomes us in their embrace year after year, and, above all, thank you to Her Majesty, the Audience!" said the FITS President.

The Sibiu International Theatre Festival ended with a multi-sensory drone light show, creating a symphony of light in the night sky above Sibiu, as more than 200 drones were employed to animate a story about FITS, alongside lasers and a classical music score.

The 30th edition of the Sibiu International Festival will be taking place next summer, between June 23 and July 2.

maia@romania-insider.com

(Photo source: FITS Facebook page / Photo by Ovidiu Matiu)