Salzburg Global Seminar on "What Future for Festivals"

"Salzburg Global Seminar posed the question “what future for festivals?” six months before the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 as a global pandemic in March 2020. The spread of the novel coronavirus and catastrophic health and economic consequences undoubtedly changed the conversation around the future of festivals. However, while short-term survival strategies and emergency responses received necessary attention, the impact of the pandemic also brought into focus the on-going challenges facing festival makers today."

In October and November 2020, The Festival Academy's General Director Inge Ceustermans joined the Salzburg Global Seminar online programme 'What Future for Festivals," which focused on how festivals today can answer the question at the heart of the programme, what exactly might the future look like for festivals, particularly given the ongoing uncertainty caused by COVID-19. Taking place on October 24, 25, 29, and November 19, the programme sought to support the global festival community and bring together experts, practitioners and innovators in the field to 'catalyze breakthrough ideas, actions and connections' to respond to the current reality.

In line with the 'What Future for Festivals" programme, Salzburg Global Seminar has recently published an article by Keng Sen Ong, Artistic director of TheatreWorks and founder of the International Curators Academy in Singapore, which asks how festivals that have grown into lavish spectacles meant to entertain might consider returning to the origin of festivals in the post-COVID world, as places to form human connections and experience art.  You can read his full article here. 

Salzburg Global Seminar has recently released its full report of the "What Future for Festivals" programme, which is available here.