Weimar Art Festival
The Weimar Art Festival is an art festival that takes place every year in late summer in the cultural city of Weimar . Founded in 1990 as one of the first joint German-German cultural initiatives, the festival presents a cross-disciplinary program with international guest performances as well as projects specially developed for Weimar. The Weimar Art Festival is Thuringia 's largest and best-known festival for contemporary theater , music , dance and visual arts . In June 2016, the festival was put on the red list by the German Cultural Council and classified in category 2 and thus as endangered.
history
From 2004 to 2013 Nike Wagner headed the festival under the name “pèlerinages” (German pilgrimage) and defined it primarily as a music festival, including the concert series “Gedächtnis Buchenwald”, which always took place at the opening, and many renowned artists. The sponsor was the Kunstfest Weimar GmbH. In 2003 the Weimar Art Festival was directed by Hellmut Seemann , President of the Weimar Classic Foundation . In 2002 Ralf Schlüter took over the organization of the Weimar Art Festival. From 1993 to 2001 the art festival was organized by the Klassik Stiftung Weimar , under the direction of Bernd Kauffmann . This was also the time in 1999 when Weimar was the European Capital of Culture . From 1990 to 1992 the art festival was dedicated to the work of famous Weimar personalities such as Goethe , Schiller , Bach and Liszt , the proceeds were used to restore Weimar's cultural monuments. Kari Kahl-Wolfsjäger was the artistic director for the first two years and in 1992 handed over the artistic direction to Johannes Gross.
Realignment since 2014
The art festival celebrated its 25th anniversary in 2014 under the new artistic direction of Christian Holtzhauer . The focus was on a greater opening towards all arts and cross-border work. International theater and dance productions as well as projects in public space formed a further focus. With “Mein Kunstfest” a spectator academy was also launched.
New artistic director 2018/19
The curator and dramaturge Rolf C. Hemke has been the new artistic director of the Kunstfest Weimar since 2018/19. Hemke, born in Cologne in 1972, studied law, German and philosophy in Münster, Geneva and Paris. Since 2006 he has been responsible for the international program in the Theater an der Ruhr: Scene Istanbul / Theater Landscapes Mediterranean / Soundscapes Mediterranean & Africa. From 2014 to 2016 he also worked as a freelance artistic advisor to the Wiener Festwochen in the field of drama for the regions of the Near and Middle East and Africa.
The start of the Art Festival Weimar 2019 was a theatrical reenactment of the Weimar National Assembly 100 years ago.
Artist (selection)
The artists and famous personalities who have appeared at the Kunstfest Weimar in recent years include:
structure
The Weimar Art Festival is partly financed by the state of Thuringia with funds from the Thuringian State Chancellery and the City of Weimar . The art festival generates around a third of its budget itself. Since 2014, it has been an artistically independent part of the German National Theater and Staatskapelle Weimar .
Web links
Sources / individual references
- "I am not afraid of the argument" - Interview with the new boss of the Weimar Art Festival, Christian Holtzhauer. In: Die Welt from August 22, 2014, here online .
- ↑ Politics & Culture 4 | 16: Page 18 Die Rote Liste , accessed on June 29, 2016
- ↑ http://www.thueringer-allgemeine.de/web/zgt/kultur/detail/-/specific/Christian-Holtzhauer-uebernehmen-Leitung-des-Kunstfestes-Weimar-12277509
- ↑ Reichstag Reenactment - Weimar - Under new management, the Weimar Art Festival begins with an impressive reenactment , nachtkritik.de on August 23, 2019, accessed August 27, 2019