‘Santiago a Mil International Theatre Festival’ is a huge celebration of dramas, dances, and music that happens every January in Santiago, Chile. It is the largest art festival in Chile, including performances from Chile and several other countries.
The festival is developed by a non-profit known as ‘Teatro a Mil International Festival Foundation (FITAM)‘, and it makes sure that everyone in Chile can enjoy good cultural events without getting over budget. It also wants to help theater and art to develop in Chile and let the whole world know about the tradition of Chilean theater. Initially, it was known as ‘Teatro a Mil‘, but in 2005, it got introduced to a new name- ‘Festival International Santiago a Mil’. This new name is to be seen that the festival includes all kinds of performances. Since 2004, the festival has been controlled by ‘Fundación Teatro a Mil’. The location of Santiago a Mil is extra special. It was built in 1935 and used to operate gold, silver, and lead ore. It is one of the last absolute mills from the depression era, still standing.
In 2024, the Santiago a Mil took place from January 3 to 28, with some street performances followed until February 8. An exhibition called Museo 31 was delayed until March 2024. Even though we don’t know the dates for 2025 yet, we can assume it to be in January again. The festival has a special week for makers where they can watch performances. This year, Platea had 205 attendees, including 110 programmers from all over the world. Many performances have English subtitles, making it available to a global audience.
Other than showing established performances, Santiago a Mil gives a chance for new ideas to be presented. In 2024, a great pitch was the choreographer Luciana Acuna’s idea from Group Krapp. She determined a performance about dance and danger, involving setting the dancers’ tutus on fire. This pitch was a mixture of excitement and beauty, expressing how gender politics plays out on and off the stage. Santiago a Mil started in 1994 as Festival Teatro a Mil, then it became Teatro a Mil International Festival in 2001, and finally got its current name in 2006. The first festival in 1994 was held for two months at Estación Mapocho in Santiago. It was a feedback to the growing interest in theater and the arts in Chile after the end of Augusto Pinochet’s military government in 1990.
The first festival presented three cool theater companies: ‘Teatro de la Memoria’ with the Chile Testimonial Trilogy shown by Alfredo Castro; La Troppa, who brought Pinocchio to life; and ‘Teatro del Silencio’, appealing the audience with Taca-Taca mon amour directed by Mauricio Celedón.
Santiago a Mil International Theatre Festival is a grand salute to the arts in Chile. It is all about sharing various stories, supporting local talent, and inspiring people through the magic of theater, dance, and music in the heart of Santiago.
Written by- Krunal Vaghela | Edited by- Apurv Nayak
