The Office of Culture of the Consell de Formentera is pleased to report that the third Formentera Folklore Festival (Festival Folklòric Illa de Formentera) will take place in Sant Francesc's Plaça de la Constitució on Saturday 25 March from 12 noon. Four dance troupes –local groups Es Pastorells and Es Xacoters; Bot Ben Ballat i Ben Sonat Xeremiers (Llucmajor, Mallorca) and Las Camaraes Folklore Group (Vinaròs, Castelló)– will perform typical dances.

Vanessa Parellada, culture councillor, hailed the fact that after several years on standby due to the pandemic, "our troupes can reconvene and offer this demonstration of folk dance so typical in the Balearics and Castelló". Parellada highlighted "the enthusiasm of the island's dance groups" and thanked them for organising the festival, which she invited all of Formentera to attend.

18 March 2023
Office of Communication
Consell de Formentera

The Office of Culture of the Consell de Formentera is pleased to report that at 6.00pm, Saturday 25 March, the Sala de Cultura (Cinema) will welcome the family theater play ¿Cuándo viene Samuel?

Two men wait by a swing set for Samuel to arrive for a party. To drive away their boredom, they make up games, give free reign to their imagination. Mr. Professor appears, gives them their lesson and leaves. Time goes by, never stops going by, it never ends, it never... Playing, they look forward to another day. What if today were already tomorrow? Climbing on the swing, perhaps they can escape.

Ultramarinos de Lucas
The Ultramarinos de Lucas company, founded in 1994 and winner of the National Award for the Performing Arts for Children, have played on stage with children for more than 25 years. They like to think that they have not yet lost their innocence and capacity for wonder. They maintain a stable research project in the performing arts, without imposing any limits on themselves, without prejudice, with passion.

The public is their horizon: It is for them that they work, they talk to them as equals, without certainties, appealing to their imagination to share emotions, thoughts, doubts, concerns, discoveries and adventures with them. And they will continue to insist, resist, persist, fight and play.

Prices and tickets
Tickets are now available on www.entradesformentera.cat for €4. Unemployed people, under-employed freelancers, retirees, under-25s, people with functional diversity, single-parent families and large families pay half price.

17 March 2023
Office of Communication
Consell de Formentera

The Office of Culture of the Consell de Formentera is pleased to report that at 6.00pm, Monday 20 March, "Migrants a Formentera" will open at the Sala d'Exposicions "Ajuntament Vell". The exhibition will remain on view until Saturday 1 April.

This exhibition marks the kick-off of the programme for Formentera Intercultural, the sociocultural project spearheaded by the Office of Social Welfare.

"Migrants a Formentera" takes a journey through local history, starting with emigration for economic and political reasons in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, until the turning point of the 1960s with the developing tourist industry, when Formentera received immigrants as a land of opportunity or model of life.

The display consists of a collection of photos, objects and documents donated by local families, as well as contributions from the Consell de Formentera Archive and the Archive of Image and Sound of Formentera. A text written by local historian Santiago Colomar offers details about these migratory movements.

The exhibition also includes works by resident artists past and present –mainly photographic portraits by Helga Sittl, Melba Levick and Pilar Aldea– which offer an idea of the diverse backgrounds present on the island. A video installation by Juan González Fornes unpacks issues like mobiliity and identification cards as keys to access, while work by Franco Giomi makes meaning of the constant arrival in recent years on Formentera's coasts of small boats from Algeria.

The exhibition is curated by Manolo Oya in collaboration with Cristina Mayans, Iris Palomo and Noelia González, the managers of the Formentera Immigration Service. "Migrants a Formentera" can be visited until 1 April, Monday to Saturday, 11.00am to 2.00pm and 6.00pm to 8.00pm. The exhibition space will close on holidays, Sundays and Monday mornings.

16 March 2023
Office of Communication
Consell de Formentera

The Office of Culture of the Consell de Formentera has put together a video about activities held at the Espai Cultural de Sant Ferran. "Since the 2021-2022 academic year when CEIP Sant Ferran relocated to the school's new premises, life and activities have continued to fill this space, and it has become a nerve centre for the island's fabric of associations and cultural and educational communities", said Vanessa Parellada, education councillor.

The video offers a glimpse of everything from dynamic activities at the Reading Spot (Punt de Lectura) to drawing and painting classes with artists young and old and the creations of sculptors in the wood carving workshop. In addition to these Consell de Formentera-organised activities, music plays an important part at the Espai Cultural too, as attested by the assorted melodies of the video soundtrack — all of them performed by students of the Conservatory.

Espai Cultural policy states that local associations can use the facilities. Among those who already have spaces to carry out their activities are associations of musicians, artisans, performing artists and traditional folk dancers. The centre is also home to Catalan, Arabic and photography classes and courses conducted by the island's adult learning centre, the Escola d'Adults. Programming is also carried out as part of Formentera Marxa, a project to promote healthy leisure activities among young people.

The ultimate goal, said Councillor Parellada, is to create an on-site Centre for Culture and the Arts. "For now, we can see the island's enormous wealth of associations, culture and art, and the importance of a creative space where individual and joint projects can take root".

14 March 2023
Office of Communication
Consell de Formentera