Context and purpose
The region of l’Alt Maestrat brings together municipalities with small populations, with figures ranging from just over a hundred to around a thousand inhabitants, and faces challenges associated with depopulation and the lack of leisure offer linked to contemporary art. The lack of continuous stage programming and technical personnel in culture has generated a gap in access to training and artistic experiences for rural youth. Xalar a l’Alt Maestrat responds to these conditions by activating a cultural landscape that links creation, participation and community life.
The initiative takes place in towns such as Albocàsser, Benassal, Vilar de Canes and La Serratella, where the festival focuses its annual programme and, through mediation processes, it promotes the construction of local audiences with the direct participation of young people.
Participation and cultural mediation
The distinctive aspect of the project lies in its model of cultural mediation. Groups of young people, aged between 14 and 32, participate in training processes, debates and selection of stage works under technical accompaniment. In this process, they acquire skills in artistic languages and programming management, which allows them to select companies, define activities and design communicative strategies for the festival.
This approach aims to install co-creation practices in cultural life, to give rural youth real agency in the configuration of proposals that dialogue with their interests and needs.
Activities and programming
Each edition of the Xalar a l’Alt Maestrat Festival is held in various municipalities in the region, with shows and activities including street theatre, circus, dance and other forms of performing arts. The programming takes place in unconventional spaces, which brings the arts closer to the social fabric of each locality.
The festival is conceived as a regional festival around the performing arts, articulating shows, workshops, community activities and meetings that mobilize associations, families and local agents.