Kimmel Center Announces Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts 2013 Time Travel Theme: Moments in Time with 50+ Arts Presenters Participating in City-Wide Festival
MAY 30, 2012
PIFA 2013 If You Had a Time Machine…?
March 28 to
Program Highlights Include Lobby Installation of Time Machine in Kimmel Center Plaza and Street Fair
Kimmel Center for the Performing Art’s inaugural 2011 Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts (PIFA) will be honored at the Arts & Business Council Awards Ceremony with the
The biennial festival, produced by the Kimmel Center, is scheduled to take place March 28 to April 27, 2013, and poses the thematic question: “If You Had a Time Machine…?” as the probing programmatic core fiber that binds together its 50+ festival events. PIFA 2013 includes a lobby installation of a time machine with interactive technological capabilities in the Kimmel Center plaza, which will serve as a hub of festival activity connecting patrons to festival events throughout the run of PIFA. The festival culminates with a Street Fair scheduled to take place
PIFA 2013 embraces multi-disciplinary, innovative new works, varying in the forms of music, dance, visual arts, theater, puppetry, and film. The 2013 theme, “If You Had a Time Machine…?,” explores defining moments in time—artistic, cultural, and historical events that shape the world we live in. Spanning from the beginning of time to contemporary pop culture moments with an eye toward the future, artistic interpretations of these moments are Philly-centric, national or international in scope. Throughout the festival, audiences will revel in experiencing when new ideas were born, visiting places where the path of history was forever altered, and exploring the moments that continue to define our society today.
Examples of PIFA 2013 program offerings range from defining historical moments of the American landscape, such as the American Civil War (1863) with Bearded Ladies civil war inspired theatre & cabaret performance, to international governmental shifts, such as the Fall of the Berlin Wall in Germany (Nov. 9, 1989) with a performance of Beethoven’s 9th Symphony by The Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia under the baton of its Conductor Laureate, Ignat Solzhenitsyn, in collaboration with the Mendelssohn Club and The Center For Emerging Visual Artists; From the release of visionary Nelson Mandela from prison in South Africa (Feb. 11, 1990) in a choral performance by Keystone State Boychoir to the loss of musical legend Billie Holiday (July 17, 1959) with a new play and music performed by Azuka Theatre and American Poetry Review. PIFA also visits recent controversial moments, such as the infamous soccer team match up of Ireland versus France (
Additional participants of PIFA 2013 include the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, Philadanco, Painted Bride Arts Center, JazzBridge, Pasión Y Arte Flamenco, and so many more.
Visit www.pifa.org for updated artist and programming information in Fall of 2012, when the full slate of PIFA 2013 programming will be announced.
“We are thrilled to announce the 2013 Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts,” said Kimmel Center President and CEO Anne Ewers, “Now becoming a biennial tradition, PIFA 2013 reflects the Philadelphia arts community’s creative, artistic spirit in retelling defining moments in time—from history, art and culture, the past, present and future—that continues to resonate in our lives today. There is something for everyone to enjoy from nationally and internationally renowned acts, to the Kimmel Center’s Resident Companies, to experimental, innovative Philly-based arts organizations.”
“PIFA builds on the core festival tenets of innovation, collaboration and creativity, established in PIFA 2011,” adds Executive Director of PIFA, Ed Cambron, “In developing the “If You Had a Time Machine…? PIFA 2013 theme, we wanted to continue to present diverse programming that intersects multiple disciplines—such as theater, film, dance and music, fashion and culinary art—while telling an overarching story that resonates with all cultures and communities, and encourages the artistic risk-taking and unusual collaborations established in the inaugural festival.”
“PIFA 2011 was an amazing success,” adds Mayor Michael A. Nutter, “We are proud that Philadelphia has such a rich and diverse arts scene that it can support so many organizations participating under one festival umbrella. The economic impact of PIFA 2011 is testament to the sheer power of the arts as a valuable contributor to Philadelphia’s economy and national profile." ______________________________________________________________________
Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts 2013 (PIFA - March 28 to April 27) is a month-long city-wide arts festival produced by the Kimmel Center that celebrates innovation, collaboration and creativity with over 50 local arts and cultural organizations presenting multi-disciplinary artistic interpretations of new works, classical performances and exhibits. The 2013 thematic focus, “If You Had a Time Machine….?,” takes audiences on a journey through time to experience the convergence of art, culture and history in artistic interpretations of great, defining moments that continue to influence society today. The inaugural 2011 PIFA, which payed homage to the artistic energy of Paris 1910-1920, attracted over 404,600 visitors to the festival’s core 135 events, in addition to 196,000 visitors experiencing the culminating Street Fair event, and generated a total economic impact of $55.74 million within the Philadelphia region.
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