Thank you, London. It’s been a good one.
- 17 co-commissioned new works
- 13 world premieres
- 16 UK premieres
- 15 sold-out shows
Thank you, you artists bringing a magical and feverish excitement with such feist, hope, grit and humour. Thank you for the extended family and the enduring memories.
Thank you, our funders, more like partners, walking alongside us with curiosity and care, welcoming challenges, leaning into the questions, fostering the stretching and the growth.
Thank you, partner venues and creative co-conspirators, for giving us homes, relationships, the iron strength of collaboration and the uplift of facing the complexities together. We are so much more when we are in community with you.
Thank you, our audience, you loyal, passionate, curious, honest lot. We remain at your service - keep telling us your truth, keep holding us accountable.
Thank you, you wild tribe of volunteers swooping in with generosity, possibility, flexibility, and readiness. Thank you for the light and the lightness. We honour you and every moment you gifted us.
There were borders of all sorts, but the hardest of them were the imagined ones that meant some could traverse and join us and others couldn’t. It hurts with a ripple effect when artists and their artworks suffer, when audience cannot experience that moment of resonance with another.
To all our artists who weren’t able to join us - we will continue to work together across borders.
And to the powerhouse that has been the Shubbak team, the nucleus that generated so much with so little, your immense commitment pulsed through every gathering, artwork, encounter and intervention. The bonds that were created over this labour of love are forever.
Londoners, we hope to see you at IMEDEA, one of the shows most affected by visa challenges that finally lands with us this month for its UK premier.
We already miss you all, so we’re delving into plotting our 2025 encounters with full hearts, ready to welcome you once more.
Alia Alzougbi and Taghrid Choucair-Vizoso
Joint CEOs, Shubbak Festival