Dear Friends:

I am pleased to extend my warmest greetings to everyone taking part in the 28th edition of Festival Accès Asie in Montreal.
This multi-disciplinary arts festival offers a wonderful opportunity to connect with artists of Asian origin from Canada and around the world. I am certain that festival-goers will enjoy the many performances and activities planned for this event as participants share their talents and showcase the heritage and history of their respective countries.

I would like to commend the organizing committee for its commitment to promoting and preserving Asian culture and heritage in Canada. Events such as this are a wonderful reminder that Canada is truly a multicultural nation, made stronger and more resilient by our diversity.

On behalf of the Government of Canada, I offer my best wishes for an enjoyable
and memorable experience.

As Minister of Canadian Heritage and Minister of Housing and Diversity and Inclusion, we welcome you to this year’s Festival Accès Asie!

For nearly 30 years, this event has invited the community to join this celebration of our country’s rich heritage by highlighting Asian arts and cultures, as well as the artists who bring them to life.

Our people make Canada the diverse country that it is today. Festival Accès Asie allows us to celebrate our communities as well as the values that unite us. 

Now more than ever, we must come together around our shared passion for the arts while also appreciating and promoting communities that make Canada a beacon of diversity and inclusivity. 

Festival Accès Asie is a vital part of celebrating the many contributions of Canadians of Asian heritage. We want to thank the team that worked tirelessly to pull this event together. We wish you all a wonderful festival and an incredible Asian Heritage Month!

© HOC-CDC / Mélanie Provencher

For the 28th year, Festival Accès Asie invites us to immerse ourselves in a rich program that highlights the passion and talent of local, national and international artists.

A unifying and inclusive event, it will once again be a special opportunity to encourage dialogue between the various communities in our city. By creating interdisciplinary and intercultural links, the oldest Asian festival in the country continues its mission to strengthen solidarity within our community.

Our city’s distinction as a cultural metropolis is due to the creativity and talent of its artisans. Festivals contribute greatly to Montréal’s influence around the world, and I would like to congratulate all those who have made Accès Asie possible.  

I invite Montréalers to embrace the artistic genius that marks this event each year and to discover the thousands of cultural facets of the Asian continent. 

I would like to take this opportunity to wish the entire Montréal community a great Asian Heritage Month and a very successful Accès Asie 2023 festival. Enjoy the festival!

Ville de Montréal © Sylvain Légaré

The arts are a vital part of our society: they inspire us to reflect, bring us joy, nourish our sense of belonging, and strengthen our connections to one another and the wider world.

We need the arts now more than ever. A strong support for a resilient, inclusive, and accessible arts sector benefits society in all its diversity.  

The Canada Council for the Arts is a proud supporter of the Festival Accès Asie and its creative contributions that bring the arts to life.

Canada Council for the Arts | Christian Lalonde

In Montréal, May is synonymous with the range of Asian cultures and traditions that form the heart of the Festival Accès Asie. Eschewing clichés, this unique event builds artistic bridges between East and West and showcases the way contemporary Asia is changing. 

The arts have the power to bring people and cultures closer together, bridging the gap on differences. Through original, high-calibre artistic activities, the Festival Accès Asie focuses on exchanges between Asian communities and the public. From visual arts to music, dance, culinary arts, and theatre, the event is a venue for discovery that resonates like a taiko in the hearts of audiences. Fuelled by curiosity, a love of Asian heritage, and the desire to absorb unfamiliar cultures, everyone can delight in the pieces of some 70 artists on the program. 

The Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec (CALQ) is proud to support the Festival Accès Asie. The mission of this event is to make a positive contribution to society by fostering intercultural exchange, which reflects the values the CALQ promotes. Our team congratulates the organization for its commitment and applauds the monumental work of Nayla Naoufal, the new artistic director, as well as Karine Kerr-Gillepsie as managing director.

Enjoy the festival!

© Arianne Bergeron

With Asian Heritage Month upon us, the Conseil des arts de Montréal would like to salute the remarkable contribution of Festival Accès Asie to Montreal’s cultural landscape. Working in close cooperation with the community, the Conseil enriches our city’s cultural offerings by shining a light on artistic activities that deserve to be better known and providing invaluable support.

Thanks to its exceptional showcase, Accès Asie enables institutions like ours to identify and amplify new voices, particularly those of immigrants and artists from diverse backgrounds. We are delighted to help ensure a bright future for such an important festival by renewing our operational support and, in the process, to consolidate the creative heart of our beloved city.

On a more festive note, we are once again delighted to host the festival’s opening cocktail at the Maison du Conseil. It is always a warm and pleasant event. New for this 28th edition, the Bijin exhibition will also be presented within our walls, from May 4 to June 24. Don’t miss this chance to discover the splendours of Japan!

Finally, I would like to acknowledge the significant legacy left by Khosro Berahmandi, who is delivering his last program as the festival’s Artistic Director, and to welcome Nayla Naoufal, who is taking over the torch. We look forward to continuing the fruitful collaboration between our two organizations.

Hats off to the entire team, and I wish everyone attending the Festival no end of wonderful discoveries in the days ahead!

©Normand Huberdeau