From the Festival Staff

When choreographer and artist Camille A. Brown read Kyra Gaunt’s book The Games Black Girls Play, the word “play” immediately shot out. She began thinking about her childhood and the many games she used to play, and how it was hard to find narratives within the media that showcased black girls being just that: girls. The message resonated and became personal. Who was she before the world defined her?

Springing from Brown’s long-held conviction that “It is important for us to talk about human stories on stage, and to tell stories we don’t see enough of,” BLACK GIRL: Linguistic Play challenges...

Did you know that New Haven was named by Expedia one of America's Top Foodie Cities?

Starting October 30, New Haven dedicates an entire week to showing off some of our delectible culinary haunts.

Here are some Festival Staff Picks to help guide your way through this Food-Lover's Haven:

Alexis Kellogg, Marketing Manager: HARVEST. You can taste how fresh the ingredients are, any dish with scallops is superb!

Liz Fisher, Managing Director: PHO and SPICE*. The food is amazing, the booths are very private and good for conversation, and the wait staff is great.

Patrick Dunn, Development Manager: ZINC is...

I’ve probably looked to the right 5,000 times in the last 6 months. Looked at this: my master Ideas schedule and roster taped to the wall of my office. This has been my Bible, my North Star, my ultimate guide. For many weeks, I have looked to this paper to remember what was when, who went where, what was missing, what came next. Now, days after the Festival has wrapped, I look at it differently. It no longer tells me of what is happening or what will happen, but reminds me what has been. With each glance, flashes of faces, bits of projected videos and images, and snatches of words from our...

Critics have a crush on "Our Ladies of Perpetual Succour," the National Theatre of Scotland's irresistibly irreverent new musical. They've been getting wildly enthusiastic reviews on their current U.K. tour and they land in New Haven for their U.S. Premiere June 10:

Our Ladies of Perpetual Succour Won't Please the Priest but We Think it's Divine

- Daily Record

"If you look up the word exceptional in a thesaurus it should give you the synonym National Theatre of Scotland. Once again the NTS has produced an outstanding piece of theatre which rivals the best seen in the last decade. Our...

I’m embarrassingly late to the party, but I recently discovered that NPR’s Serial is in fact not the only great podcast out there. And now I’m obsessed with listening to podcasts whenever possible.

Lately I’ve decided to put my addiction to good use. Since we're creating a Festival 21 Town Hall Idea event about work as both obstacle and opportunity, I started listening to podcasts about work in order to spur thought on related issues we might discuss. Here are a few recommendations to help you get prepped for the Festival:

Reveal's "Decoding Discrimination in America’s Temp Industry"...

Hillary Clinton seems poised to accept the nomination of the Democratic party, but it isn’t as clear as it may seem what this, and her potential presidency, means for feminism in the U.S.

While the media has been a-flurry for months over the fractious topic of how women supporting or not supporting Clinton connects to feminism, to me the more urgent, less symbolic question right now is: will a President Clinton change the establishment to help women achieve equality? Clinton is a woman, yes, but she is a woman of the establishment. The jury is out on how radical or progressive she may turn...

First Niagara Bank’s Church Street branch was transformed into a downtown after-hours hot-spot May 10!

Festival sponsor, First Niagara hosted our kick-off event for downtown New Haven businesses and partners to preview Festival 21, hear exciting announcements, and find out ways the Festival can benefit their businesses.

The event was emceed by Comcast/ NBC Connecticut’s Dan Corcoran - not only a TV news personality but also a downtown New Haven resident and millennial Festival fan. He introduced First Niagara’s Jeff Hubbard who announced new promotions of our Headline...

That’s us, Anna and Kathrin, two interns from Germany working in the community and behind the scenes at the International Festival of Arts & Ideas.

We joined the staff for three months, before the Festival begins. The nickname “German Sensations” was given to us by a House Manager while we were helping at a Festival performance in March. Who'd have thought when we traveled to the U.S. this winter we'd experience falling snow inside a pub? That's what happened during an early highlight for us in our time here: the play The Strange Undoing of Prudencia Hart from the National Theatre of...

The International Festival of Arts & Ideas is more than just performances and lectures.

Across the 15 days of each Festival, numerous programs promote healthy living through active lifestyles, food and sustainable consumption, and activities that engage the mind as well as the body. The message we spread is one of building a healthy community, living life to the fullest and enriching the mind, body and spirit.

Unfortunately it’s difficult for us, at times, to incorporate these messages of healthy living into the demanding schedules of our staff and crew. By day 15 of the Festival most of...