Tag: montréal

News

Feedback on Festival Accès Asie’s 29th edition

Thank you for participating in the festival during the months of may and june 2024! To celebrate the end of a wonderful season, you can find below some articles and interviews that are going to bring you right back to our 29th edition! 

 Opening

Mountain Lake PBS | FESTIVAL ACCÈS ASIE celebrates Diversity and Creativity at its 29th edition ! | May 8 2024

Interview with Nayla Naoufal

Le Devoir | Les multiples identités asiatiques à l’affiche du Festival Accès Asie tout le mois de mai  | Article by Marco Fortier, May 2 2024

Ghosts Within – les fantômes qui nous habitent et Jiā 

Sors-tu? | Festival Accès Asie 2024 | Anqi Sun et la dépression politique | Interview with Anqi Sun by Noémie Rochefort, April 24 2024

Les ArtsZé | Voyage culturel: Explorer les horizons artistiques asiatiques | Review by Jacqueline van de Geer, May 13 2024

If My Body had a Name

atuvu.ca | Entrevue avec Hoor Malas | If My Body had a Name, un solo intime qui questionne | Interview with Hoor Malas, May 3 2024

KinoCulture Montréal | Hoor Malas @ Agora de la danse  | Review by Élie Castiel, May 16 2024

Les ArtsZé | Si mon corps avait un nom | Review by Jacqueline van de Geer, May 16 2024

Radios & Podcasts

CIBL – Sous le radar | Interview with Nayla Naoufal and Hoor Malas, by Ariane Monzerolle | May 10 2024

Canal M-Aux Quotidiens | Interview with Nayla Naoufal by Hélène Denis | May 15 2024

CKUT UpStage | Interview with Andrew Tay by Xander Chung | May 16 2024

CKUT Lesbo sons |Interview with Kama by Nathalie Di Palma | May 20 2024

CKUT Lesbo sons | Interview with Nayla Naoufal by Nathalie Di Palma | May 20 2024

CKUT UpStage | Interview with Hoor Malas by Xander Chung | May 9 2024

Back to the news

News

Call for volunteers

© Kathy Poire and Maureen Pasquier

Become a volunteer for Festival Accès Asie ! 

For this 29th edition, we need motivated volunteers to help us with the opening cocktail on Thursday May 2, 2024, from 3 to 9 pm!

Through performances, exhibitions, concerts, and workshops, the Festival showcases artists from Asian communities and collaborations with artists from other communities. It builds bridges between Asian artists and the rest of society, and offers cultural mediation activities.

On the program for this evening: Indian choreographer Amrita Choudhury and Kanien’keha:ka (Mohawk) dance artist Barbara Kaneratonni Diabo will come together to celebrate the festival’s launch through a sacred ritual, followed by Indian classical Odissi, Indigenous Fancy Shawl (a powwow dance), and the rhythms of folk  Bollywood. Afterwards, DJ Ziad Nawfal will have the audience dancing to the beats of the Middle East.

Interested?
Register before April 23, 2024 at [email protected]

In the meantime, find the full schedule of the Accès Asie Festival on our website accesasie.com/ and follow us on Instagram (@festivalaccesasie) and Facebook (Festival Accès Asie).

We hope to see you there!

Back to the news

News

For this 29th edition : a message from Artistic Director, Nayla Naoufal

Nayla Naoufal – Artistic Director of Festival Accès Asie – © Caroline Tabet

As we continue to mourn the devastating loss of life and territory caused by genocide, war, and the massive displacement of communities, we turn to art. Not to forget, but to keep breathing, to be together, to listen, to observe.

The artists presented by Festival Accès Asie in May 2024 are generous, daring, attentive, bold, and sensitive. They decompartmentalize practices and imaginations, reinvent forms and narratives, or push them to their limits. 

This 29th edition features artists and curators from across the Asian diaspora, as well as their collaborators. On this Indigenous land where we are guests, this intersectional and embracive program celebrates hope, solidarity, and hospitality. Some of the works examine the memory of bodies and landscapes, while others focus on stories told by the living, waterways, and islands. But all celebrate the joy of being oneself and make room for different ways of seeing the world.

Hand in hand with Festival Accès Asie’s board of directors and team, I wish you a beautiful Asian Heritage Month!

Nayla Naoufal – Artistic Director of Festival Accès Asie

Back to the news

News

We talk about us in the Press

We talk about us!

We are glad to share with you all the articles and interviews about this 28th edition of Festival Accès Asie.

You will find each press articles, podcasts about our festival’s activities and program – This page will be update frequently

PRESS · ARTICLES

Le Devoir | Exposition Bijin: Beauté à la japonaise et les femmes créent leur muse | By Amélie Revert | May 9 2023

Radio Canada | Sit, Eat & Chew, Explorer l’identité asiatique et l’histoire du quartier chinois par la danse | By Yan Liang – May 25 2023

CBC | Bijin: Beauté à la Japonaise | May 1st 2023

WestmountMag | Festival Accès Asie: une diversité de disciplines artistiques | May 4 2023

Arts & Culture | Kickstart – Festival Accès Asie | May 9 2023

CultMtl | the hybrid condition | May 13 2023

Le petit septième – François Grondin

Cocktail d’ouverture | May 6 2023

Asiate en court | May 15 2023

Asiate en court · Programme #1

Asiate en court · Programme #2

alokori | May 22 2023

RADIO & PODCAST

CBC | All in a Weekend with Sonali Karnick | April 30 2023

Global News (TV) | By Laura Casella | 2 mai 2023

Émission Ici Musique – Vi@Fehmiu | Festival Accès Asie souligne le mois du patrimoine asiatique au Canada | May 11 2023

CIBL Sous le Radar | May 13 2023

Winston McQuade & Sylvie Harvey | LE CULTUREL 2.0 | May 13 2023

CBC | All in a Weekend with Sonali Karnick | May 14 2023

CBC | Let’s Go with Sabrina Marandola | May 17 2023

Back to the news

News

Read our Artistic Director, Nayla Naoufal’s message!

Nayla Naoufal – Artistic Director of Festival Accès Asie – © Caroline Tabet

‘Imagination is a factory where hope is manufactured. If the counternarrative to violence is care, then that’s where you will find me’ Sundus Abdul Hadi.

As the 28th program of the Festival Accès Asie (FAA) is unveiled, I pay tribute to my predecessor Khosro Berahmandi, the architect of this vibrant line up and the recipient of the Charles Biddle Prize in 2022 for his contribution to Quebec’s cultural and artistic development. Khosro has been carefully weaving interconnections within the arts ecosystem and valuing the voices of artists from the Asian diaspora.

This edition emphasizes collaborations between artists from various fields, from different regions of Asia, from different Canadian provinces, as well as projects involving emerging artists and established artists… These collaborations underscore the relations of care and hospitality patiently cultivated by Asian artists within society.

One of the challenges of the FAA is to build a unifying space where artists from diverse Asian diaspora communities can exchange, build solidarity, create together, and reach out to their audiences. We rise to the challenge with this year’s program, which takes place on unceded Indigenous territory, of which the Kanien’kehá:ka nation is the guardian and protector. We are grateful to live in Tiohtiá:ke – which means “where the currents meet” in the Kanien’kehá:ka language – also called Mooniyang – “hollow place” in Anishinaabemowin. We are thankful for the opportunity to highlight, on this territory, the vitality and effervescence of Asian diaspora artists’ practices, from the shores of the Mediterranean Sea to Japan and the Philippines, from Kazakhstan to India.

Hand in hand with Festival Accès Asie’s board of directors and team, I wish you a beautiful Asian Heritage Month!

Nayla Naoufal – Artistic Director of Festival Accès Asie

Back to the news

News

March 20 to 25 – Let’s Confront Racism Together!

For the second year in a row, Festival Accès Asie is committed to taking part in the fight against systemic racism.

We are therefore developing our anti-racist component through the arts in March 2023, on the occasion of the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination and the Semaine d’actions contre le racisme au Québec.

For this second edition, Festival Accès Asie is organizing four activities that delve on the racism experienced by racialized and indigenous artists throughout their careers.
The activities proposed during 2nd edition will take place from Monday, March 20 to Saturday, March 25, 2023, including an evening of screening and discussion dedicated to racialized filmmakers whose work address racism,

📌 A screening of 4 short films followed by a discussion with the filmmakers around their questioning of identity,

📌A screening of indigenous short movies that draw on the links among identities and lands,

📌 A conversation among asian artists on the role played by stories in reclaiming Chinatowns,

📌 A concert and a party that celebrates the solidarity among artistic communities and the people involved in interconnected antiracist struggles.

Find the entire program here ➡️ Event for Let’s confront racism together !

Back to the news

News

Khosro Berahmandi is retiring as Artistic Director

As some of you already know, our dear Khosro Berahmandi will be retiring as Artistic Director of Festival Accès Asie in January after more than 25 years of service! He intends to take this opportunity to work on his personal artistic projects and enjoy some well-deserved rest. We are sad to see him go, but the Festival is a big family, and we are sure to see him again very soon in visual arts exhibitions across Montreal! We will not soon forget Khosro’s incredible contribution to Montreal’s cultural landscape, his significant addition to the artistic representation of the entire continent of Asia, and of course, his memorable hair and inimitable style! Thank you so much for your wonderful work and your contagious energy dear Khosro! Happy retirement, you’re cool like cucumber!  

Of course, if Khosro retires, this means that his position is vacant! We are therefore looking for a dynamic person to fill the role of Artistic Director! We are searching for someone who ideally has experience in multidisciplinary programming in the Montreal cultural scene and who has an expert knowledge of Asian arts and cultures. The position will start on November 14th for transferring knowledge before Khosro’s official departure in January 2023. All details on our Career page! 

Back to the news

News

Thank you for more than 4,000 spectators!

Another edition of Festival Accès Asie has come to an end! In total, 4097 of you attended this year’s events! This edition was fraught with difficulties due to the current sanitary circumstances, but all in all, the team is very satisfied with the festival’s in-person return after two years of virtual programming.

We would like to thank the wonderful artists in our program, all of our collaborators and our loyal audience for their unwavering support! Thank you all for participating, and we’ll see you next year for a new edition more vibrant than ever!

Our stats for this 27th edition:

  • 20 events,
  • 13 Montreal venues,
  • More than 70 artists,
  • …And more than 4,000 spectators! 🎉
Back to the news

News

Launching of our 2022 program!

You’ve all been waiting for it: our 2022 program has finally been revealed! 🎉 Discover below the 19 events that will make up our 27th edition. This year, we will finally be able to meet in person after two years of online shows, and celebrate Asian Heritage Month together in different Montreal venues. All the details of the events can be found on our Program page.

  • May 5 at 5 p.m | Opening cocktail | Conseil des arts de Montréal (Free) [FR/EN]
  • From May 5 to May 29 | Origami Workshop | Online (Free) / Workshop for kids [FR]
  • May 6 at 8 p.m. | From Tokyo to Montréal | Gesù ($10) / Cinema [EN]
  • From May 7 to May 29 | Asian Horror & Cynicism | Maison de la culture Janine-Sutto (Free) / Visual Arts [FR/EN] [Opening on May 7 at 2 p.m. Round table on May 8 at 2 p.m.]
  • From May 11 to June 12 | Terre Fertile | Maison de la culture de Côte-des-Neiges (Free) / Visual Arts [FR/EN] [Opening on May 11 at 5 p.m.]
  • May 12 at 8 p.m. | Pendulum in the Mirror | Jeunesses Musicales du Canada ($20) / Music [FR/EN]
  • May 13 at 8 p.m. | Fireworks Play Readings – Never Walk Alone | Gesù ($10) / Theatre [EN]
  • May 14 at 2 p.m. | Water and Dreams | OBORO (Free) / New media [FR/EN]
  • May 14 at 8 p.m.| Fireworks Play Readings – Lady Sunrise | Gesù ($10) / Theatre [EN]
  • May 14 at 8 p.m. | Mystic Music from Pakistan | Auditorium of the Grande Bibliothèque BAnQ ($30) / Music [FR/EN]
  • May 15 at 2 p.m. | Delight your taste buds: Mongolian cuisine | Om Restaurant ($20) / Culinary Mediation [FR]
  • May 19 and May 20 at 8 p.m. | PANJ | MAI ($20) / Multidisciplinary [EN]
  • May 20 at 9 p.m. | Blue Move$ with Transpacific Express | Centre Phi ($20) / Music [FR/EN]
  • May 21 starting at 8 a.m. (available for 24 hours) | The Path of Dreams | Online (Free) / Theatre [FR]
  • May 22 at 9 p.m. | Suoni Per Il Popolo visits Festival Accès Asie | Sala Rossa ($10) / Music [FR/EN]
  • May 26 at 7:30 p.m. | Od-Sor & Double Tigers | Conservatoire de musique et d’art dramatique de Montréal ($25) / Dance [FR/EN]
  • May 27 at 7:30 p.m. | Unexpected Path | Conservatoire de musique et d’art dramatique de Montréal ($25) / Dance [FR/EN]
  • May 28 at 8 p.m. (EST) | On the Move: National Asian Heritage Celebration | Online (Free) / Multidisciplinary [FR/EN]
  • May 29 at 2 p.m. | Closing show | Lahaie Park (Free) / Dance, Music & Workshop [FR/EN]


Back to the news

News

Let’s confront racism together!

On March 21 and 22 at the MAI (Montréal, arts interculturels), Festival Accès Asie invites you to two days of activities focused on the fight against racism and the sharing of individual stories and experiences of racialized people.

Crédit : Camille Rioux

In response to the rise of intolerance and racism in recent years, Festival Accès Asie is determined to make a concrete commitment to the fight against discrimination by creating an anti-racism component to complement its regular programming. As part of the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination and the Semaine d’actions contre le racisme et pour l’égalité des chances in Quebec, we invite you to take part in “Let’s confront racism together!”, our two-day event focused on sharing and raising awareness about the experiences of BIPOC (Black, Indigenous and people of colour) communities, including systemic racism issues. For this first edition of its anti-racism component, the Festival is partnering with the Super Boat People Collective to present three round tables as well as a closing musical performance. The activities’ schedule can be found below.

Monday, March 21, 2022

  • 5 P.M.: Round Table — The Importance of Individual Stories and Narratives in the Fight Against Discrimination
  • 7 P.M.: Round Table — Anti-Asian Racism and the Pandemic: An Assessment

Tuesday, March 22, 2022

  • 5 P.M.: Round Table — Systemic Racism in Quebec
  • 7 P.M.: Musical Performance by Melissa Girvan

For a full description of the activities and to find out who will be participating in the round tables, see our event webpage or our press release.

Back to the news

News

FESTIVAL ACCÈS ASIE – 27th Edition
May 5 to May 29 2022, in Montreal

From May 5 to May 29 2022, the 27th edition of Festival Accès Asie will celebrate a new year of Asian arts and cultures in Montreal, showcasing a festive programme during Canada’s Asian Heritage Month.

We are determined that the pandemic will not stop Festival Accès Asie from putting together a discovery-filled season, from dance to visual arts as well as music, theatre, and culinary arts, with activities for people of all ages, for you, your family and friends.

The 27th edition of the Festival Accès Asie will officially be held from May 5 to May 29 2022 and marks the return of the festival in its presential form, after two years of virtual events! Altogether, 19 events will take place throughout the month of May in various Montreal venues as well as online.

Before we unveil our entire programme on Monday, April 4, our team at Festival Accès Asie invites you to discover some of the artists and events featured in this diverse and highly colourful season.

  • Opening Cocktail | Thursday, May 5 at 5 p.m. | Conseil des arts de Montréal (Free)
  • Fertile Land | Wednesday May 11 to Sunday June 12 2022 | Maison de la culture Côte-des-Neiges (Free)
  • Asian Horror & Cynicism | May 7 to June 5 2022 | Maison de la culture Janine-Sutto (Free)
  • Origami Workshop | May 5 to May 29 2022 | Online (Free)
  • Pendulum in the Mirror |Thursday, May 12 at 8 p.m. | Jeunesses Musicales du Canada ($20)
  • Water and Dreams | Saturday, May 14 at 2 p.m. | OBORO (Free)
  • Delight your taste buds!: Mongolian Cuisine | Sunday May 15 at 2 p.m. | Om Restaurant ($20)
  • Le sentier des rêves | Saturday May 21 starting at 8 a.m. (available for 24 hours) | Online (Free)
  • Od-Sor & Double Tigers | Thursday May 26 at 7:30 p.m. | Conservatoire de musique et d’art dramatique de Montréal ($20)
  • On the Move: National Asian Heritage Celebration | Saturday May 28 at 8 p.m. (EST) | Online (Free)

To read our pre-launch release in its entirety, click here.

Back to the news