At Glacier, the Cultural Spaces/ATP, under the presidency of Monique Fréjaville, have reviewed the 2024-2025 season and presented the prospects of a promising year 2026 full of great moments, especially on the stage of the Bastides Theater and the natural settings of the Festival in Bastides.
The president highlighted a report filled with pleasant surprises at the end of a theater season that was applauded both in terms of quality and attendance. She thanked, on behalf of the association, “all those who support the Cultural Spaces, businesses, local authorities, partners, sponsors, volunteers because without them the programming could not be done” and of course the always loyal public. The 14 shows brought together 5445 spectators in the theater, including 3070 students from kindergarten to high school, a balance that demonstrates a clear desire to share culture with all generations without exception and to gradually renew the audience.
“The balance is satisfactory, despite a slight deficit mainly due to transportation costs that burden the budget. Since the beginning of the year, there has been a substantial increase in attendance and the remarkable fact is the ever-increasing presence of students, some of whom were prevented due to the suspension of the Culture Pass during the interminable budget vote of the State.” The mediation of the “Performing Arts in Middle Schools” in partnership with the Departmental Council, as well as dance workshops for students and mediation activities with the Youth Center as part of the CLAS program, were well received by the audience.
Cultural spaces also include the enchanting summer break of the Bastides Festival, directed for the first time by Patrick Cabandé. “For its 25th edition, the Festival was a great success, with an estimated attendance of about 20,000 spectators in the six western municipalities of the department involved, Villefranche, Villeneuve, Najac, Sauveterre, Bas-Ségala, and Rieupeyroux, with higher capacities than the previous year for some shows, which has a positive economic impact on the territory.”
The organizers noted an intergenerational audience, mostly tourists, but with more and more regulars and locals who are becoming loyal, a promising observation for the upcoming Festival in Bastides scheduled for the first week of August 2026.
