STREET ARTISTS IN EUROPE - Fondazione Fitzcarraldo

Street Artists in Europe
important when performing; in some countries such as Belgium, for example, foreign
performances strictly based on texts are refused by many festivals, because texts should be
translated to be understood but would then loose something of their artistic original value. The
fact that a company shows a piece with a mainly textual content written in a foreign language, is
one of the main reasons why that company will probably not involved in a festival.
Other professionals on the contrary state that text-based performances are much more requested
in other countries, and add that some forms of “national humour” can be mainly based on words,
more than on mimics.
Communication is important to promote a company in foreign countries and in festivals where it
has never performed. Means of communication include performing and providing material, with
different degree of importance: sure being seen at work – “in situ” – is the best way to make
one’s own activity appreciated, therefore festivals work also as a “showcase” for companies.
Yet providing information and material – for example by mail, or during some festivals which
give this chance to companies, working as “bourses de spectacle” – can be useful to let directors
know that the company exists 387 .
5.2. Knowing the field
Knowing the audience is very important both for companies and for festival directors.
Companies in fact can choose appropriate topics and the right approach (humour, kind of
performance etc.) for that audience, in order to prepare a performance which can be really
appealing, catching, suitable for a certain mindset or a particular sense of humour. As already
written, some topics (e.g. violence) or some contents (e.g. naked performers) can be not suitable
for some audiences.
Knowing the field, directors can choose the program of their festival according to the taste of
the audience. It is to remember that, as street festivals do not require to pay a ticket, the best way
to understand if the audience likes the festival is to see if they stay or they go.
From a more artistic point of view, as the aim of street art is to change people’s life – if only for
a while –it is important to have “clear eyes” and to know what is surrounding the performer, in
terms of social and urban context. “A festival deals with the social and physical space and
wishes to change the social reality, so it tries to understand its own audience and to widen it by
finding the right language to involve for example ethnic minorities or people from the suburbs;
festival sometimes try to find urban spaces in decadence and to make them live again through
the performance”.
387 From the research “UK Street Arts and mainland Europe”, by Arts Council England (2005): “UK based
respondents had mixed feelings about the usefulness of sending unsolicited company information. Some felt it is
essential to send colour publicity (of the same high quality that European companies use); some said that
publicity is only useful as a backup once work has been seen or recommended and is not a cost effective way to
market themselves; some have done no international mailings, one has done one for the first time this year and
is awaiting results”.
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