Debate – It Takes a City: Are you also exhausted?
At a time when the Belgian cultural sector is more creative and productive than ever, we are simultaneously confronted with growing symptoms linked to this accelerated production (lack of resources, mental health issues, lower quality support, etc.).
What would it mean to “slow down”? Do we want to slow down? How, and what would we want to do less? To do it better? And do we have the necessary knowledge and practices to work in a regenerative way rather than in an exhausting and extractive way?
Practical
The debate starts at 2pm in English.
The speakers of this debate will bring perspectives from artistic practice, research, humanitarian response, and civic organizing. Their dialogue situates exhaustion not only as an individual experience, but as a structural condition shaped by political, institutional, and social pressures, opening space to imagine regenerative alternatives.
Speakers
- Marta Keil
- Ivan Azazian
- Fazli Kostan
- Mohsen Al Zaher – Performer (Zombification)
- Mercedes Dassy
- Marios Bellas
- Julia Reist – Moderator
Duration: 2 hours
Location: Lagrange Points, Lakensestraat 157, 1000 Brussels
Register now
It Takes a City
Following a successful first edition in 2024, It Takes a City (ITAC), the biennial festival for performing arts, will return in February 2026. The festival is a collaboration between atelier 210, la Balsamine, Beursschouwburg, Charleroi danse, KWP Kunstenwerkplaats, Les Halles de Schaerbeek, Kaaitheater and workspacebrussels, four Dutch-speaking and four French-speaking organisations, and presents existing productions and new projects by artists from all over the world who have found a home in Brussels. In a city where art scenes often coexist, the partners want to build bridges between the Flemish and French-speaking communities.
The carefully curated programme showcases the rich variety of artistic practices, cultural perspectives and performing arts languages that Brussels has to offer. The emphasis is on artists who deserve extra visibility and a springboard to the international scene. The festival targets both the general performing arts audience and (inter)national professionals. By connecting artists with international programmers, It Takes a City acts as a dynamic platform that helps stimulate the development of artists’ careers outside Brussels and Belgium.
This second edition brings dance, theatre and performance by Adeline Rosenstein, Anne-Laure Vandeputte, Arno Ferrera & Gilles Polet, Arno Ferrera & Gilles Polet, Caroline Roche, Désirée Cerocien, Haig Aivazian & Noor Abed, Ilyas Mettioui, Marianne Chargois, Mercedes Dassy, Nikima Jagudajev, Pablo Lilienfeld & Federico Vladimir, Parvin Saljoughi, Soa Ratsifandrihana & Bonnie Banane.
It Takes a City is supported by Vlaamse Gemeenschap, Vlaamse Gemeenschapscommissie, Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles, Wallonie-Bruxelles Internationale, Wallonie-Bruxelles Théatre Danse, Brussel stad/Ville de Bruxelles, COCOF, Brussels Hoofdstedelijk Gewest, Kunstenpunt & Loterie Nationale Loterij
