Last Tuesday, the Instituto Francés of Madrid presented in its theater and in premiere the activities that will compose Escenas francesas: Juntos, creativos, europeos, the cultural season of the French Embassy in Spain / Instituto Francés de España, by 2025.
The event was chaired by the Ambassador of France, Kareen Rispal, and the cultural advisor of the Embassy of France, Éric Tallon. It also had the presence of a patron of exception: the Mallorcan artist Miquel Barceló, very linked to French culture.
The French ambassador, Kareen Rispal, welcomed the intensity of the cultural relations between the two countries and claimed the importance of the cultural season of the Instituto Francés in these times of great uncertainty. “The attacks on our democracies, he commented, our values and our modes of operation demand our mobilization. This is the spirit in which our programming has been conceived”.
The cultural adviser, Éric Tallon, explained the three axes that are at the basis of the Institute’s programming: to continue deepening cooperation in the creative sphere, to reflect on the convulsions of today’s world and to promote common values.
He also mentioned the key events of the season, including the exhibition 100% L’EXPO, organized in collaboration with La Villette, an exhibition by Nicolas Floc’h as part of PhotoEspaña, a tribute to Costa-Gavras in the presence of the director, o Francia is on Screen, the French film festival in Madrid with the best films of the year.
The Fête de la Musique will be celebrated with a tour of the Maraboutage collective from Marseille and concerts by Bigflo et Oli in Barcelona and Madrid; it will support Lacrima, a work by Caroline Guiela Nguyen, premiered in Avignon and presented by the Centre Dramatico National, and the exhibition by Tarek Atoui in collaboration with the TBA 21 Foundation, at the Museo Thyssen. With the Zyva studio, they will participate in the dynamic festival of concentric architecture, in Logroño.
The work of monuments to French culture, such as the tours by the Orchestre de Radio France (especially at the Palau de la Musica in Valencia), the Ballet Malandain in Biarritz and the performances by Ouramdane and Prejlocaj, will continue to be disseminated. There will be a cycle on Carmen in Seville to commemorate the 150th anniversary of Bizet’s opera; and concerts of Les Arts Florissants at the Auditorio Nacional and Les Indes Galantes at the Teatro Real.
As for literature, the Instituto Francés will host numerous writers such as Kamel Daoud, Sabine Duflot, Gael Faye, Sandrine Colette, Nicolas Mathieu, Laura Vazquez and the winner of the Goncourt Prize in Spain.
The institution will contribute to the reflection by feeding debates throughout the year, culminating in the Festival of Ideas in September at the Círculo de Bellas Artes in Madrid.
The Women in Focus cycle will be organized this year in collaboration with the Film for Women festival, to which France is a guest of honour. It will pay tribute to the ecofeminist Françoise d’Eaubonne and there will be events in favor of the respect of LGBTQUI+ people, such as an event during the Pride party with DJ Rebecca Warrior or the exhibition “flamenco queer” at the Instituto Francés de Barcelona.
To conclude the season’s opening act, acclaimed French pianist Florent Boffard gave a concert featuring pieces by Chopin, Boulez and Debussy.
