Gruff Rhys will join Lleuwen Steffan and Hijinx in a Welsh art and culture showcase of events in France that will bring Welsh Government’s dedicated year of Wales in France to a close next month.
The showcase will be delivered thanks to funding from British Council Wales in partnership with the Arts Council of Wales, Wales Arts International, and the Welsh Government as part of a £100K Wales-France Cultural Fund.
The fund is part of the Welsh Government’s year of Wales in France a celebration of culture, business and sports events, designed to forge new connections between the two countries.
As part of the Cultural Fund, six artists and organisations from Wales, are being supported to collaborate with French creatives to develop new work across a range of artforms.
Welsh musician Gruff Rhys will perform a special one-off concert at Le Solaris in Paris on 5 March, presenting his new album Sadness Sets Me Free. The album features an array of French musicians, was recorded between Marseille and Paris and co-produced by French engineer Maxime Kosinetz. Special guests will include French-based artists that feature on the album.
Theatre company Hijinx pioneer, produce and promote opportunities for actors with learning disabilities and/or autism. Their project Bon Appetit is a clown and puppetry performance that has been developed with neurodivergent artists in Wales and Compagnie de L’Oiseau Mouche in France, and premieres in Lille, France in March 2024.
National Eisteddfod Genedlaethol Cymru is collaborating with Festival Interceltique de Lorient on a music and film production led by Brittany-based Welsh singer, songwriter and musician Lleuwen Steffan, which takes inspiration from Welsh folk music in the sound archive of St Fagan’s National Museum of History. Leading artists from Wales and Brittany are collaborating on the production, which premieres at the festivals in August 2024, before touring theatres in Wales and Brittany in 2025. Lleuwen Steffan will be touring an intimate solo presentation of Welsh folk hymnal songs from the production in chapels across Wales and Brittany from February 2024.
Operasonic, have been working with young people in Newport, South Wales, in collaboration with early career French and Welsh music professionals to produce The Game, a short film exploring the emotions connected to playing and watching rugby, that will be screened in outdoor “street” venues; Dirty Protest Theatre have connected early-career playwrights in rural Wales and France to explore new ways of writing and theatre-making; and Mathilde Lopez, director of August 012 theatre, is collaborating with singer songwriter Katell Keineg, developing a performance exploring Keineg’s identity as a Welsh/Breton woman.
Mark Drakeford, First Minister of Wales, highlighted the importance of the Cultural Fund, saying:
“This impressive showcase is the culmination of our Wales in France year, which has strengthened a centuries old friendship between our two nations, binding us closer together in all things culture, sport and business.
“Through the cultural fund, Welsh creatives have been able to collaborate with our French friends, flourish in their art, and show off their incredible talents on an international stage. I was lucky enough to be hugely impressed by Sage Todz and Adwaith's performances in Nantes last summer, so I can't wait to see what Gruff Rhys, Hijinx, Lleuwen and all of our other amazing artists have in store for us next month. A stellar line-up that we can truly be proud to call Cymraeg."
Sarah Horner, Chief Executive, Hijinx, commented on the impact of the fund:
“Following a great artistic and organisational exchange in 22/23, we're thrilled to be able to take our collaboration with Compagnie L'Oiseau Mouche to the next level thanks to the Wales in France fund. The fund has supported the creation of a new inclusive theatre piece, developed with and by learning-disabled artists in Lille and Cardiff. There is huge cultural and creative value in working with partners outside of Wales and we can't wait to share the result of this collaboration with audiences in Lille in March.”
Opera director and singer Harvey Evans, has led Operasonic’s project, he said:
"We believe in the power of art and culture to build connections between communities. ‘The Game’ is not just a film; it's a celebration of Welsh culture. We want to share our passion for rugby, music, and community with the people of France and, in doing so, foster a deeper connection between our cultures.”
Wales in France has supported cultural moments around global events such as the Rugby World Cup in Autumn 2023 and bridges into the UK/France Spotlight on Culture 2024 Together we Imagine programme led by the British Council France, supporting new cultural collaborations in the run up to the Paris Olympics and Paralympics in 2024.
British Council Wales has previously supported a range of arts projects linking Wales and France, most recently supporting the collaboration between BBC National Orchestra of Wales and the Orchestre National de Bretagne in a series of joint concerts in 2022 and 2023. The orchestras will be performing special concerts in Rennes, Brittany, on 4 and 6 April, as the year of Wales in France bridges into the UK/France Spotlight on Culture 2024.
Ruth Cocks, Director British Council Wales, spoke about the legacy of the fund. She said:
“The Wales in France Cultural Fund has created new connections, strengthened existing cultural ties and is supporting projects in both Wales and France, giving artists and cultural organisations in both countries the opportunity to collaborate creatively and develop lasting relationships.
It’s wonderful to see the fantastic creative work resulting from these collaborations. All six projects are unique and will help develop and sustain vital links between both our countries, supporting artists and organisations to explore ways of working internationally, grow their networks, gain fresh perspectives and reach new audiences.”
Dafydd Rhys, Chief Executive Arts Council of Wales, added:
“The Year of Wales in France has been a remarkable opportunity to highlight Wales’s distinctive culture and enhance Wales’s international profile. We are pleased to have co-invested in the Cultural Fund alongside British Council Wales and the Welsh Government through our agency, Wales Arts International. This fund has enabled artists to develop their work in France sustainably and foster what we hope will be long-term relationships.”
As part of the Wales in France grand finale, an infamous Van Gogh self-portrait, Portrait of the Artist (1887), will be on show at National Museum Cardiff from March, thanks to a reciprocal art swap with Musée D’Orsay, Paris.
This is the first time the Van Gogh self-portrait has ever visited Wales. In exchange, Amgueddfa Cymru’s much-loved La Parisienne by Renoir, also known as ‘The Blue Lady,’ will make its journey across the Channel.