Held by Mordem Sanat in Diyarbakır between 30 April and 30 November 2021, SoloFest: The Storytelling Tradition from Past to Present was organised as a multidisciplinary festival aiming to bring traditional storytelling forms together with the contemporary performing arts. The festival was supported by the Kültür için Alan (Space for Culture) Micro Grant Programme. This support aims in particular to encourage local cultural production, to strengthen independent art spaces and to make cultural diversity visible.
In the festival’s second edition, 17 plays, 2 workshops, 3 talks and 26 events were held with artists from Azerbaijan, the Netherlands, Italy, Iran and Türkiye. The events were staged at the Diyarbakır City Museum, Mordem Sanat’s various spaces, Babel Terrace and three village schools. The opening was planned to increase public participation with a marching band, circus, living statues and street performances. With the festival’s ticket revenue, puppet-making workshops were held in four village schools.
In addition, under the guidance of Şule Ateş, site-specific short solo performances titled “Diyarbekir Hikayeleri” (Diyarbekir Stories) were prepared. Panels and talks explored the historical and cultural dimensions of the solo storytelling tradition.
In total, the festival reached 1,327 audience members and generated more than 114,000 interactions on social media. Participants included local residents, children, artists, educators and various social groups. The festival made it possible both to keep cultural heritage alive and to bring international and local artists together.
While laying the groundwork for projects planned for the future, such as the Travelling Children’s Festival, this edition of SoloFest reinforced Mordem Sanat’s commitment to passing on cultural heritage and to children’s participation in cultural life.