Vila Nova de Famalicão City Hall is guaranteeing that the professional cultural structures based in the municipality are able to develop their work irradiating culture. Just for 2023, the municipality of Vila Nova de Famalicão will invest more than half a million euros in the 18 structures that are part of the Performing Arts Platform 'Sobre o Palco'. This support is particularly relevant in a year when some of the entities involved saw the support of the Direção-Geral das Artes to the development of their projects fall apart.
The recent exclusion of the artistic structures O Cão Danado, Associação Fértil Cultural and Teatro da Didascália in the DGArtes' 2023/2026 and 2023/2024 Sustained Support Program, meant that these entities with a vast artistic curriculum and that were previously supported by this governmental institution, lost, altogether, a financial support of around 600 thousand euros for 2023.
For O Cão Danado this exclusion meant "a catastrophic start to the year" for the company, according to artistic director Sara Barbosa. "It was a whole team that suddenly finds itself unemployed", she adds.
Cláudia Berkeley, actress of Teatro da Didascália, on the other hand, mentioned that "there was a need to rewrite and adapt our projects", to ensure that they move forward with the works planned for 2023. "We are in a phase of resilience (...) the support of the municipality is fundamental and the solidarity we felt (from colleagues and partners) in the face of this impasse was somehow comforting," she mentioned.
For Rui Leitão, artistic director of Associação Fértil Cultural, the exclusion of sustained support was the same as putting the artistic structure at risk of life. "We feel that our project is on a deadline. We don't have a vision like we had two or three years ago, of long continuity" says the director, adding "when we received the news of the end of DGArtes' support, our deadline was next month (April)". A goal that will only be missed, thanks to the positive responses obtained in other projects, with institutions such as the Cupertino de Miranda Foundation, from Famalicão, "which kept us a little on our feet and we'll last at least until December".
In face of this disinvestment, the Mayor of the Famalicão City Hall, Mário Passos, reiterated today, during an informal meeting with the structures that compose the platform 'Sobre o Palco', this morning, at the Narciso Ferreira Theatre, in Riba de Ave, that the municipality will "continue to support these structures from the financial, technical and logistic point of view, so that these 18 structures that integrate the platform 'Sobre o Palco' can continue to develop their work".
After the results of the DGArtes / Ministry of Culture's Sustained Support, the municipality's role has become even more important, due to the situation of instability that came from the exclusion of three professional entities from famalicenses of this funding. "Regardless of the DGArtes opinion, the City Hall kept its commitments and believes in the work of these artistic structures" says Mário Passos. These exclusions "limit Famalicão's contribution to the cultural development of the country and I hope that the Minister of Culture will review this situation of injustice that he has created in Famalicão".
Only in 2023, of a total expected financing of 920.900 euros, raised by the 18 structures of 'Sobre o Palco', about 57% comes from the municipality (528 thousand euros), with the remaining financial support coming from partners such as DGArtes, Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, among others.
Regarding 2021 and 2022, the municipality has invested in these entities, respectively, close to 418 thousand euros and more than 500, 5 thousand euros, in support associated with the development of the activity plan and works, as well as indirect support in co-productions of Casa das Artes and Narciso Ferreira Theatre.
Between 2021 and 2023, more than 360 thousand euros were invested in the development of coproductions between municipal theatres and the structures of the performing arts platform.
"These co-production projects end up giving stability to artistic structures and motivate them to develop their own projects, so they can apply for DGArtes funds and increase their liquidity and stability" says Álvaro Santos, director of Casa das Artes and Narciso Ferreira Theatre, who stresses the municipal theatres' strong bet on 'home-grown silver'.