Santarcangelo 2026: Final Edition Under Tomasz Kirenczuk Explores 'Deep Pressures'
The 2026 Santarcangelo Festival in Santarcangelo di Romagna has wrapped up, marking the end of Tomasz Kirenczuk's tenure as artistic director, which began in 2021. Under the theme 'deep pressures,' the festival explored queer, intersectional, ecological, and postcolonial issues, highlighting the body as a platform for dissent. President Giovanni Boccia Artieri spoke about the pressures faced by bodies, while Kirenczuk described it as a 'moment of common breath.' An artist discussion focused on the 'politics of breath,' drawing on Achille Mbembe's ideas. Performances included Harald Beharie's 'Undersang,' Ndoho Ange's 'Welcome to My Jungle,' and Ewa Dziarnowska's 'Like It Is (work in progress),' among others, featuring artists such as Bast Hippocrate and Mehdi Dahkan.
Key facts
- The 2026 Santarcangelo Festival concluded, ending Tomasz Kirenczuk's artistic direction that started in 2021.
- The festival's theme was 'deep pressures,' focusing on the ambivalence of pressures on bodies and identities.
- President Giovanni Boccia Artieri stated that pressures can crush or reveal, and the festival invited audiences to embrace this ambivalence.
- Kirenczuk described the festival as a 'moment of common breath' and a pause for encountering diverse perspectives.
- An artist talk addressed 'politics of breath,' referencing Achille Mbembe's concept of the universal right to breathe.
- Harald Beharie presented 'Undersang' at the Arboreto di Mondaino, involving a trek and queer diasporic narratives.
- Ndoho Ange's 'Welcome to My Jungle' at Teatro Petrella in Longiano deconstructed stereotypical gestures associated with black bodies.
- Martín Soria's 'Machito' challenged gender binaries through the Andean Caporal dance and Two-Spirit concept.
- Catol Teixeira's 'ODE' was a dance dedicated to fragments and transformations, returning for the fourth consecutive year.
- Wojciech Grudziński presented 'Cute & Awkward' and 'BOW,' exploring power and vulnerability.
- Ewa Dziarnowska's 'Like It Is (work in progress)' was a three-hour piece exploring time as Kairos, with performers kiana rezvani and Sunayana Shetty.
- Other performances included works by Bast Hippocrate, Mehdi Dahkan, Tea And, and Ali Chahrour.
Entities
Artists
- Tomasz Kirenczuk
- Harald Beharie
- Ndoho Ange
- Martín Soria
- Catol Teixeira
- Wojciech Grudziński
- Ewa Dziarnowska
- kiana rezvani
- Sunayana Shetty
- Bast Hippocrate
- Mehdi Dahkan
- Tea And
- Ali Chahrour
- Achille Mbembe
- Giovanni Boccia Artieri
- Lucas Lagomarsino
- Dawn Penn
- Annie Lennox
Institutions
- Santarcangelo Festival
- Associazione Santarcangelo dei Teatri
- Teatro Petrella
- Teatro Il Lavatoio
- ITS Molari
- Frascati Producties
Locations
- Santarcangelo di Romagna
- Italy
- Mondaino
- Longiano
- Oslo
- Norway
- Paris
- France
- Porto Alegre
- Brazil
- Geneva
- Switzerland
- Rio de Janeiro
- Poland
- Berlin
- Germany
- Warsaw