Epress.am News from Armenia
In what is being called a “Behind-the-Scenes” event took place with members of the International Festival and Events Association (IFEA) at the Yerevan State Puppet Theatre named after Hovhannes Toumanyan, as part of the High Fest International Performing Arts Festival, the main theatre festival of former Soviet states.
At the unofficial event, current festival policies of different countries (Russia, China, Estonia, Finland, Armenia) were presented within the context of EU cooperation. The main topic of conversation was money: from where to secure funds and what is the role of the state in this?
Festival President Artur Ghukasyan briefly noted the main organizer in Armenia’s theater arena, the Theatre Workers Union of Armenia. According to him, the union still operates with Soviet inertia.
The example of China’s state policy seemed “like a dream” to the Ghukasyan, who said that Beijing city hall allocates tens of millions of dollars to Chinese students for performances, and provides halls and transportation free of charge.