ASSOCIACIÓ MARATÓ DE L’ESPECTACLE ART AND COMMUNITY

Short report

THE ORGANIZATION

The Associació Marató de l'Espectacle is a nonprofit organization dedicated to the conceptualization, coordination and spreading of cultural

events, created by us or lead by other public or private institutions, always with a broad view. Our projects include several

artistic disciplines, from performing arts (theatre, dance, circus), to the most contemporary visual arts and video art.

The shared aim for all our projects is to bring art closer to the general public. For such reason our cultural events have a free

entrance and, the majority of them, are located in public spaces. Our interest is to approach art to citizens.

HISTORY

The Associació Marató de l'Espectacle was legally founded in 1994 as a non-profit organization, but it actually begun 12 years earl ier, in 1982, with the object ive of transforming the lack of contact between performing arts and the general publ ic.

For this reason it was created a space for companies and artists , to share their work and

investigat ion: With such spir it it was created the “I Marató de Teatre, Dansa, Música i Circ”. From that first experience, and giv ing the great public response, the festival, later

called Marató de l'Espectacle was consolidated year after year as an unavoidable reference in contemporary arts, especially performing arts, until the 2008 edit ion, when it

was celebrated the 25th anniversary of a unique art istic and cultural event, opened, support ive, creative, emotional, reflexive, renovator and integrator. In that year the La

Marató de l'Espectacle came to an end. On the other hand, in 1992, the associat ion created the first Barcelona festival solely dedicated to dance: Dansa al Parc, which took place in the unique Gaudí's modernist

masterpiece Park Güell . Because of the fest ival's great success, in 1996 the Associació Marató de l'Espectacle decided to expand the festival on other parts of the city such as

the Museu d'Art Contemporani de Barcelona (MACBA, Museum of Contemporary Art of Barcelona), the Picornell olympic swimming pools and the Centre de Cultura Contemporània de Barcelona (CCCB, Center for Contemporary Culture of Barcelona). The fest ival changed

its name to DIES DE DANSA, a festival that puts the city in motion.

de tots i per a tots. Volem obrir nous camins amb l’associació , noves oportunitats per crear diversitat i projectes de qualitat...benvinguts!

Such fest ival caught the attention of several dance professionals and dance organizations from abroad, a situation that led the Associació Marató de l'Espectacle to carry out and

coordinate similar events as Dies de Dansa but in other European and latin-american cities. In such way, in 1997 it was founded CIUDADES QUE DANZAN, an international

network of dance festivals which share a common objective: the promotion of contemporary dance in urban spaces. At the same time, other projects based in the power

of arts as a source of social change were born, such as INTERFERÈNCIA (2002-2008 ), an annual street art intervent ion venue, or the family dance workshops DANZA EN FAMÍLIA

(2003-2010), among others.

At present, we want to keep encouraging and developing these urban and art istic projects, aimed to the community, and at the same time we want to offer ourselves as an

organization which acts resolutely in the cultural management out look and in the cutting-edge contemporary arts. Through our association, we want to start new paths, new

opportunities to create diversity and quality projects. . . welcome!

OUR PROJECTS

DANZA EN FAMÍLIA

CQD – DANCING CITIES

DIES DE DANSA FESTIVAL

DIES DE DANSA FESTIVAL

DIES DE DANSA is an international contemporary dance festival in urban spaces. It is a free annual cultural project born in Barcelona, which is part of the GREC

Festival de Barcelona. During f ive days buildings, streets, parks and plazas flood with life in this encounter between dance, urban space and community.

DIES DE DANSA takes place in different points of Barcelona, such as the Centre de Cultura Contemporània de Barcelona (CCCB, Center for Contemporary Culture

of Barcelona), the Fundació Joan Miró, the Museu d'Art Contemporani de Barcelona (MACBA, Museum of Contemporary Art of Barcelona), the Pati Manning and the Picasso Museum; as well as in the cit ies of Mataró, Sabadell and Sitges. The daylight programme consists on the presentation of short performances that

artists elaborate specifically for each place, with the participation of over 25 national and international companies. At night, the festival’s meeting point –both

for professionals and the general public– is the ESPAI EN MOVIMENT (space in motion) at the Pati de les Dones in CCCB, with solo performances, video

projections, bar and chil l out.

During the festival , DIES DE DANSA becomes a place for artist ic creation, a platform for professionals – national and international, renowned and up and

coming – from every dance field. Its relevance makes it , at the same time, a major attraction for the promotion of Catalonia and Spain.

DANZA EN FAMÍLIA-DANCING WITHIN THE FAMILY

They are workshops meant to 4 to 12 year olds, accompanied by at least an adult member of the family. Sessions will last 2 hours, with a 15 minutes-break. The

current edit ion wil l be held in the Museu Picasso of Barcelona every Sunday of May and June.

These workshops work on the bonds between different members of the family

through art . From its beginning in 2003 in Barcelona, it has had artists such as Sol Picó and Mariona Sagarra, Àngels Margarit , Rootlessroot Company, Compagnie 7273,

Damián Muñoz, Andrés Corchero, Enric Ases, Juan García, Neus Ferrer, Heidrun Panhofer, Isabel Montero and Laura del Caño, Esmeralda Berbel, Vanilton Lakka,

Olga Sasplugas and Juan Eduardo López.

Psychologists and educators remind us that games and family life are very beneficial for the child's balanced emotional growth. DANCING WITHIN THE FAMILY

proposes the re-encounter with the other and with the community through art . Games, movement and imagination stimulate the participants’ free creativity. The

share of litt le intimate, unique, individual and collective acts. The freedom of getting in and getting out of the game. The freedom of no final play and that the

result does not have to coincide exactly with the one proposed. .

CQD – DANCING CITIES

CQD – DANCING CITIES is an international network of festivals with a programme of contemporary dance shows in urban landscapes. Currently, the CQD network is

composed of 32 European, Asiatic and South/Central American Members.

The CQD – DANCING CITIES network was created by the Associació Marató de l’Espectacle in 1997 in Barcelona, Spain. The organization, conscious of the

shortage and connection between dance and public, in 1992 created the first site specific dance festival in the city of Barcelona; Dansa al Parc , a festival with one

clear intention: to present dance in a seductive space, like the architect Antoni Gaudi’s Parc Guell. Afterwards, the event grew to other points of the city and due to the growing interest by professionals and international organizations, Associació

Marató de l ’Espectcale encouraged and helped to carry out similar festivals in other cit ies . Starting in 1997, the international network CQD-DANCING CITIES began

growing in a gradual manner. The association has coordinated the network since its creation and has succeeded to create an international circuit integrates by

independent festivals, with a common objective: the promotion of dance in urban landscapes .

For more information: www.cqd. info .

OUR SERVICES

UNIQUE AND TAILORED EVENTS PRODUCTION

We offer our experience and consolidated career in the design, conceptualization and production of cultural events, to companies, organizations, foundations and institutions, from public administration or private enterprises. From an innovative

point of view, and with great understanding of the own needs of each project, we always meet our distinguishing quality and interaction goals.

CONCEPTUALIZATION AND COORDINATION OF CULTURAL PROJECTS

From the association we work to manage every step of your project, from the origin of the idea to the realization of the project: we give coherence to the init ial

development of the project; we study, analyse and plan its technical and economical viability; and we plan the communication design, marketing campaign and, in case

there is any, we take on the possible technical needs. In short, the essential steps to go from the idea to the reality.

OTHER PROJECTS

THEATRE, DANSE AND CIRCUS COMPANIES MANAGEMENT

We offer the complete management for the works and creations of any company working on performing arts, from the research of economical support, the budget

planning, and the search to perform in theatres, festivals and exhibit ions, among many other activit ies.

Some of the companies that we have been working with are: Membros Cia. de Dança,

Fura dels Baus, Barcelona Adictos o Associació Cultural Indi Gest.

The Associació Marató de l’Espectacle also realised other broad trajectory projects like MARATÓ DE L’ESPECTACLE FESTIVAL (1984-2005) an art feast which displayed more

than 150 companies and artists who presented a short performance of their works to programmers, press and public during two consecutive nights or the Ephemeral Arts

Festival cal led INTERFERENCIA (2006-2008), which searches complicity and participation from the public, and promotes contemporary creativity as well as the erosion of the

boundaries between creator and audience.

WWW.MARATO.COM Trafalagar street, 78, 1-1 08010 Barcelona, SPAIN Phone: 0034 932681868

Fax: 0034 932687983 info@marato.com