Date & Venue: 20 June 2025 | Online with participants from across South African and International
Facilitator: Cornelia Faasen
Hosted by: Nasionale Afrikaanse Teater-inisiatief (NATi)
This FEC training session was designed to empower theatre practitioners, festival organisers, and creative entrepreneurs with the knowledge and strategic tools needed to thrive within South Africa’s theatre-festival ecosystem. The workshop unpacked how festivals operate, how funding structures work, and what theatre makers need to successfully tour their productions across multiple platforms and locations.
Key themes included lessons learned from the COVID-19 era—such as digital upskilling, livestreaming, and hybrid festival models—and the importance of positioning festivals within broader provincial and national cultural landscapes. Participants received practical guidance on long-term planning, budgeting red flags, crafting professional press packs, and meeting technical and operational requirements.
The session also highlighted what festivals look for when selecting work: audience resonance, tour-readiness, scalability, compelling visual material, and a balance between originality and cultural relevance.
The workshop featured dynamic engagement, with participants sharing questions, experiences, and insights about funding pathways, hybrid production models, collaboration opportunities, and access strategies. Several festival organisers—from Karoo Festival to Soweto Heritage Fest, Waterberg Theatre Fest, FunFest25, and others—contributed perspectives, underscoring the diverse and vibrant network of creatives represented.