The 19th Macao City Fringe Festival, organized by the Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC, from the Portuguese acronym), will be held in January next year, encouraging the creative spirit and risk-taking attitude, adopting the concept of “All around the city, our stages, our patrons, our artists”. The call for proposals of programmes and performance venues is now open and all local arts and cultural associations, programme curators, producers, individual art practitioners and those who are interested in artistic creation are invited to submit proposals. In addition, the Fringe also invites the general public to participate in it as venue provider. The deadline for applications is 5pm on 21 June 2019.
The Macao City Fringe Festival strives to bring a variety of artistic and creative works to the city, breaking the barriers of traditional performance venues. In addition to an open call for proposals, this edition of the Fringe Festival includes the new “Crème de la Fringe” project. Participants are required to curate a “mini festival” for the 19th Macao City Fringe Festival based on a specific customised community or theme. The “mini festival” must include no less than three programmes and two extended activities. The maximum budget for the entire unit is up to MOP500,000. With this, IC hopes to further attract the participation of local producers and curators and encourage productions that have connection with the local culture and community. In order to create even more opportunities for exchange between local groups and foreign artists, the Fringe will invite industry professionals, programme curators and producers from other regions to enjoy the Fringe performances, offering an exchange platform for local artists and foreign producers and increasing performance opportunities.
The call for proposals of programmes is now open. Macao art practitioners and non-profit art and cultural associations registered at the Identification Services Bureau are welcome to submit their applications. All forms of performing arts or artistic activities including overseas works or cross-regional collaborations are welcome, while priority will be given to local productions, site-specific productions and productions that have connection with the local culture and community. In order to encourage local groups to actively engage in productions and continue to offer performance opportunities, the local or cross-regional production of the 19th Macao City Fringe Festival which shows greater potential will have a chance to be presented at the 32nd Macao Arts Festival.
The regulations, application form for proposal of programmes and the Fringe venue registration form can be downloaded on IC’s website at www.icm.gov.mo. Applicants may submit their completed application forms and relevant documents in person during office hours or by post at the Cultural Affairs Bureau Building located at Tap Siac Square, or by email to fringe@icm.gov.mo, indicating the following on the envelope: “Attn: Division of Performing Arts, Cultural Affairs Bureau, 19th Macao City Fringe Festival – Call for Proposals of Programmes”. Applicants who propose performance venues may also submit the completed Fringe venue registration form by email to fringe@icm.gov.mo. IC will hold a briefing session on 20 May, at 7:30pm, at the Cultural Affairs Bureau Building, located at Tap Siac Square, introducing the content and other relevant information of the call for proposals of programmes. Interested parties may register by phone through tel. no. 8399 6660. For enquiries, please contact Ms. U through tel. no. 8399 6660 during office hours or email to mcu@icm.gov.mo.