The performing arts break with Corte: chronicle of a break foretold

PalmBad practices, contemptuous attitudes, mistreatment, and threats directed at cultural professionals and organizations. This is just the tip of the iceberg that has led to a rupture between the performing arts sector—the main professional associations in the area signed the statement issued a week ago—and the Palma City Council. The rupture comes after a series of incidents reported over the past two years by organizations such as the Association of Playwrights (ADIB) and the Association of Professional Actors (AAAPIB), which together have nearly two hundred members. Now, they are all jointly pointing the finger at the Director General of Performing Arts and Music for the City Council, Rafel Brunet, and demanding accountability from the councilor for the area, Javier Bonet.

Contacted by ARA Baleares, Brunet declined to comment on the situation or the statement, as did the General Coordinator of Culture and Tourism for the Palma City Council, Fernando Gómez de la Cuesta. Cort's refusal to comment on the performing arts sector's manifesto came on the same day that Palma's mayor, Jaime Martínez, defended "the transformation of the tourism model through culture" at the latest edition of the World Travel Market in London.

The Circus Cycle

While the issues raised by the sector have been ongoing for some time, everything came to a head following the latest edition of the Palma Circus Cycle, now renamed Palma Circus. Just days after this year's event concluded, the Association of Circus Professionals of the Balearic Islands (APCIB), which had spearheaded the project with the previous city council administration, issued a statement announcing their withdrawal "due to a lack of institutional respect and a loss of the project's founding values." Among other things, they cited "a lack of transparency and democratic participation," "decisions made without consensus," and "changes in economic conditions and a lack of professional respect." In response, the City Council issued a statement accusing the association of being "sectarian and arbitrary" and of "exclusively benefiting its own circle" without guaranteeing the quality and diversity of the cycle.

"The truth is, we can't say the City Council's response surprised us, even though it was completely absurd, but it did lead other performing arts associations to contact us, and together we decided it was time to jointly denounce everything that has happened over these years. We had the strength to talk." This is the statement of one of the members of APCIB who, like the other sources consulted by ARA Baleares, asked to remain anonymous. Most do so because they fear repercussions, losing future opportunities to program their shows in the city with the most public stages in the Balearic Islands, and because some have already felt singled out. However, there are also those who emphasize that the idea is to avoid personalizing the complaints, "because they are signed by the main performing arts associations."

Unima has joined the six organizations that signed the statement issued on October 31st (Illescena, representing performing arts companies; APDIB, representing dance professionals; Mesa, representing cultural educators, in addition to the aforementioned APCIB, AAAPIB, and ADIB). "It's curious that they call us sectarian, if anything," continues this circus professional in conversation with ARA Baleares, "because our association represents more than 80% of the circus sector in the Balearic Islands. Even so, none of the 11 shows proposed for the last edition by the Rafel Brunet trio were from our group. And, coincidentally, he has programmed shows from the company where he used to work on more than one occasion."

Can Ribes

However, the circus sector's discontent has other contributing factors, such as the management of Can Ribes. "It had already been agreed with the previous administration that it would be a space dedicated to the circus, owned by the City Council but managed by the association of circus professionals. We didn't invent this idea; it's what they do in Catalonia, Valencia, and Galicia, to name just three examples. The point is that with the change of government, it became clear that they weren't interested, and they weren't interested, and they're going to be interested, and they're going to be interested. At no point was there any willingness to engage in dialogue with us, despite our years of demanding that the circus sector, which has grown tremendously in the Balearic Islands in recent years, needs a space in which to rehearse and research."

'Ca ses Monges'

Shortly before the plenary session where that vote took place—the same one in which the Councilor for Mobility, Corte, made a "I like fruit" comment to Neus Truyol, spokesperson for MÉS per Palma—in mid-November 2023, casting began for the first major theatrical production launched by the current administration: Forteza, scheduled to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the author's death. "We were unable to clarify the working conditions of the performers, even though we requested this information through various channels, including a formal request," says one of the members of the Association of Professional Actors and Actresses (AAAPIB). "They only told us that 'the artists receive a salary and are registered with the Social Security system for artists for rehearsals and performances,' which we took for granted."

Even during the pre-production phase of the play, several industry associations issued a statement titled "Fum e ilusionisme, lack of transparency in the management of the performing arts in Cort." At that time, Rafel Brunet did speak to ARA Baleares and assured them that the conditions would be "according to the agreement of the Teatro Principal." He added, however, that "I've been an actor for 30 years and they've never told me how much I'm going to be paid before the audition. When, moreover, I can be negotiating based on the show, if this is my fee, if I would do it for this amount... So, where does that leave artistic freedom if everyone else is doing it and we finalize it beforehand? We defend freedom, and we defend it. He accepted it on the first try and is very happy."

The Balearic Association of Performing Arts Companies, Illescenes, also wanted to join the statement to point out that some of its member companies, thirteen in total, have received "attempts from the City Council to significantly lower the fees for professional projects, proposing very low prices." "They really like to negotiate because they have a purely mercantilist view of culture," says another artist consulted, a member of a theater company, "and the only thing they're interested in is the money involved. And I'm not saying that it shouldn't be taken into account; it's a criterion that should be considered in everything, but it can't be like this."

Rehearsal spaces

In this regard, another performing arts professional, a member of associations like Illescena and APDIB, speaks of the obstacles companies have encountered when trying to use municipal venues as rehearsal spaces when they are not in use. "It's a long-standing problem that we had already brought to the attention of the City Council. They told us yes, they would take it into account, but not only has it not improved, it's gotten worse. We've even encountered things like them haggling over setup time when negotiating the terms for a performance, or them telling us, 'They offered it to us without sound!' How can you do something like that?" An actor associated with AAPIB, the organization that has represented them since 1998, corroborates this. "We had secured a collaboration agreement that allowed us to process requests more efficiently, quickly, and directly," he explains, "because if you had to make requests through the usual channels, there was often no time to spare." Well, this milestone hasn't been respected either, and we're back where we started, which is that we have to do it through an in.

All of this, reflected in the statement that speaks of an "impoverishment of the cultural fabric," had already been conveyed to the main officials in charge of the Culture Department of Cort. It was at a meeting that took place a few months ago, attended by various representatives of some of these associations, as well as Rafael Brunet, Fernando Gómez de la Cuesta, and Javier Bonet. "And they told us they were listening and taking note of everything, but nothing has changed in all this time. And, in fact, things have stayed the same," says one of the professionals present at the meeting, who adds that "we had never encountered a similar situation. In more than 20 years of working in this field, it had always been possible."

The island's playwrights, through the Balearic Association of Playwrights, have also joined the manifesto, which pointed out issues such as an "irregular distribution" of the financial compensation allocated to the Xesc Forteza Competition for comic and satirical plays, promoted by the association. "Mr. Brunet's response was that he would only receive support from the City Council if it were transformed into a competitive call for proposals under his direct control," they assert.