In 2013, the Croisements festival is celebrating its 8th edition (April 10-July 3). Created after the Franco-Chinese crossed cultural years (2003-2005), on the demand of the French President and the Chinese President, the Croisements festival has become the biggest French cultural festival abroad and the biggest foreign festival in China.
From April to June, it offers a program throughout mainland China (not including Hong Kong and Macao, which welcome The French May) in all artistic disciplines: cinema, theater, dance, music, painting, photography, literature, circus, street arts, new media etc. It presents the dynamism and creativity of the French artistic and intellectual scenes.
The Croisements festival is also the showcase of French creative and cultural industries, and of Franco-Chinese cultural co-productions. Additionally, it includes training programs, workshops, and seminars for students and professionals in culture.
This year, the Croisements festival is holding 77 events, totaling160 performances in the following 23 cities: Canton, Changsha, Chengdu, Chongqing, Dalian, Foshan(Shunde), Guiyang, Harbin, Hangzhou, Jinan, Kunming, Lijiang, Nankin, Qingdao, Pékin, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Tianjin, Wuhan, Tongxiang(Wuzhen), Xi’an, Zhongshan, and Zhuhai.
The main events of the Croisements festival by artistic discipline are:
The new circus, a discipline that revisits traditional circus techniques along with innovative artistic approaches:: the Sens dessus dessous company presents an extraordinary juggling show, ‘Linéa’, in Beijing and Guangzhou. The BP Zoom company has evolved the art of clowning today with ‘Mélange 2 times’ in Guangzhou, Shanghai, and Beijing.
Contemporary dance will also be present this year: The spellbinding show, ‘Yo Gee Ti’, by choreographer Mourad Merzouki, is born from a collaboration between Asian and French dancers, and will be performed in Beijing, Shanghai, and Shenzhen. The performance “Feng Shui”, the result of French choreographer Mohamed Rouabah’s residency, presents a work with the dancers of Dangster company from Kunming, to Chengdu, Chongqing, and Kunming.