Bucharest International Poetry Festival to take place in September
The Bucharest International Poetry Festival (FIPB) is set to bring together poets and artists from around the world between September 14 and 20.
Organized by the Bucharest City Hall through the National Museum of Romanian Literature, this year’s festival proposes the theme “Slow Gun Poetry/Long-Range Poetry,” inspired by poet Cezar Ivănescu’s reflection on the power of a simple sign on a sheet of paper.
According to the organizers, the theme starts from the idea that from a word, ideas, consciences and even revolutions can be born, and that the true strength of the world does not lie in force, but in meaning.
“Poetry is not a form of escape from reality, but one of the most powerful ways of understanding it. At a time when words are increasingly used to separate, radicalize and build walls between people, the Bucharest International Poetry Festival assumes, through this edition, the mission of bringing the word back to its natural space: that of dialogue, freedom, empathy and the meeting between people and cultures,” said Ioan Cristescu, general director of the National Museum of Romanian Literature, cited in the press release.
This year’s edition features guests from the Republic of Armenia, Austria, the Czech Republic, Cyprus, China, Croatia, France, Greece, Italy, Lithuania, the Republic of Moldova, Peru, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Tunisia and Turkey, alongside numerous Romanian poets and artists. More than 50 events are included in the festival program: public readings, debates, conferences, exhibitions, concerts, performances, recitals and commemorative events.
The festival will officially open on Monday, September 14, at 18:00, in the Hall of the “Carol I” Central University Library. The opening ceremony will bring together representatives of partner cultural and diplomatic institutions, as well as ambassadors and representatives of cultural institutes from participating countries.
The evening will continue with a concert performed by the ARCO Chamber Ensemble, public readings by Romanian and international poets, and a reading-performance by Slovenian poet Aleš Šteger, recognized as one of the most original and translated voices in contemporary European literature, accompanied on accordion by Tori Jure.
An important component of this year’s edition of FIPB is dedicated to the memory and recovery of great Romanian poets. The program includes commemorative events dedicated to Cezar Ivănescu, Emil Botta, Constanța Buzea, Angela Marinescu, Marin Sorescu and Magda Isanos, organized in partnership with the Bucharest National Theatre. At the same time, this year’s edition marks 130 years since the birth of Tristan Tzara, founder of the Dada movement, through a workshop dedicated to children and adults, in which poetry meets visual art and calligrams.
Moreover, FIPB will feature programs dedicated to children and teenagers, such as comic book workshops, creative activities, literary games and numerous other projects.
(Photo source: Facebook/Muzeul Naţional al Literaturii Române)
