Editorial & Routes

Editorial

Bounce back. Think differently. Get (back) into motion.

In an age of multiple crises — geopolitical, ecological, social — it has become urgent to collectively seek new momentum. The 41st edition of far° festival of live arts is titled rebonds (rebounds), an invitation to reinvent ourselves, to resist, and also to collectively dream of new and unexpected paths.

It is with great joy that we welcome this year to Nyon artists from Belgium, Brazil, Chile, France, Spain, India, Iraq, Italy, Palestine, the Netherlands, Peru, El Salvador, Senegal, and Switzerland. Their voices — diverse, powerful, and committed — resonate as so many sensitive responses to a world under strain. Their works do not seek to flee complexity, but rather to respond to it with energy, lucidity, poetry — and sometimes even with humor. They open up alternative paths, envisioning more desirable and dignified futures.

Do you like to follow a narrative thread through the program, or do you prefer to let yourself be carried by the serendipity of encounters and discoveries? Our six thematic journeys (p. 4) invite you to explore the festival’s performances, workshops, and concerts. Come see circus on the rooftops of Nyon, learn how to stumble with flair, or watch for mysterious creatures emerging from a small wooden house. And as you move along, what if you looked at the landscape with fresh eyes? Perhaps you’ll see the world’s tallest tower rise in a Nyon square, embark on an escape between sky and hillside, or swap solid shelter for the gentle embrace of a yurt, just for a while. Together, let’s listen to stories from here and elsewhere, to imagine feminist, ecological, decolonial, and pacifist futures.

This year, seven Relax performances offer a gentler, more welcoming, and more inclusive setting — so everyone can experience art at their own pace. We’re also delighted to present, for the first time, three works accessible to blind or visually impaired audiences: Jusque dans nos lits, LUGAR, and All of Me.

Since 2022, far° has been undergoing a deep transformation through the PERMA-CULTURE project. Inspired by the principles of permaculture, it aims to turn the festival into a more humane, sustainable, and locally rooted ecosystem. This project has fostered many partnerships: performances are now hosted at the Soliderie de Nyon, Gland’s library, local neighborhoods, and the Scène Nord. Some roots stretch even further: across French-speaking Switzerland with Récits du futur (Une Utopie un peu merdique and Faire troupeau), and nationwide with Extra Time Plus (Confession – Solo with sound, DORIS, Venir meno).

The far° box office is expanding its offer with two new options: our unlimited pass lets you see the entire festival for CHF 100, or choose the loyalty card — buy 4 tickets, get 1 free.

Let us stay curious and open. This festival is also a privilege — the chance to still take time to think, create, listen, and come together. In a global context full of concern, this freedom — so precious — deserves to be recognized, shared, and defended. In this spirit, we reject all forms of violence and express our solidarity with civilian populations, wherever they may be, who are victims of oppression.

Enjoy the festival!

Anne-Christine Liske et l’équipe du far°

Routes

The far° team offers a few routes to help guide you through the programme. Of course, you are welcome to explore your own routes too.

Family Route.
Some events are suitable for children accompanied by an adult. You will find the minimum recommended age set by the artists and the far° team on the relevant programme pages.

Relax Route.
“Relax” performances soften traditional theatre conventions and offer a more flexible experience, making performing arts more accessible to a wider audience.

Dwelling in the World, Listening to Places.
Artistic forms that question how we live in, perceive and name the world, blending language, territory and collective imagination.

Weaving Spaces of Resistance.
Narratives that invite reflection on how we resist and how we might collectively imagine spaces of freedom and transformation.

Collective Dynamics and the Joy of Bouncing Back.
Playful, thought-provoking approaches that highlight the strength of bouncing back together in the face of today’s challenges, and our power to reinvent ourselves.

Unravelling Dominant Narratives, Amplifying Other Voices.
Opportunities to shift our perspective and open up new imaginaries by listening to silenced voices.