Nearly 15 thousand spectators passed through the enclosure of Anima-te, the programme of socio-cultural summer animation of Vila Nova de Famalicão that took place between June 4 and August 29 in Devesa Park, with a programming that included 84 shows linked to artistic areas such as music, film, theatre, circus, among others.
After being one of the first municipalities in the country to promote the reunion of citizens with culture, in the summer of 2020, Famalicão repeated this year the successful formula of Anima-Te and the public responded en masse.
For almost three months, the venue of Anima-Te received hundreds of local and national artists, with highlight to Miguel Araújo, Zé Amaro and Carlos Nuñez, in June, Toy, Ana Laíns, Fingertips and Carminho in July, and Selma Uamusse, The Partisan Seed, Luísa Sobral, Bruno Pernadas, B Fachada, Joscho Stephan and Tatanka in August. Highlight also to the activities developed in the scope of the Antonine Festivities, which were marked with concerts, exhibitions and the installation of a food court in the car park next to CESPU.
There were, in the same way, framed in Anima-Te cultural projects of local institutions that suffered an interregnum due to the pandemic, or that stopped for lack of conditions to advance in an autonomous way, as it was the case of the Mostra Medieval Iberian Viking of CIOR, the International Festival Vaudeville Rendez-Vous of the Theatre of Didascália, the Laurus Nobilis Hangover of the Ecos Cultural Association of Louro, the Festival Calça-Ferros of Gracafe and the Mel : : Arts Picnic by the Elogio Vadio Association.
“There is not the slightest doubt that this was a successful bet” highlights Paulo Cunha, Mayor. “Encouraging these initiatives has allowed us to attenuate the existing discouragement in the cultural sector and to enhance the community’s involvement with its city”, he said.
In addition to the existing programming in the Devesa Park, the second edition of Anima-te also included a sports dimension through the Move-Te project, which put thousands of famalicenses during the months of June and July in various parts of the county.
In the touristic dimension, Anima-Te provided "Walks through the territory" to more than a hundred visitors during the summer months. Through free tourist routes, these visitors visited iconic places of the city of Famalicão, exploring famalicense cultural, architectural and landscape heritage.
It is also worth highlighting the operation, in Praça da Cidadania, of the Handicraft and Street Food Market, which counts on the presence of more than 20 artisans and three "street food" units. This is a space for gastronomic fruition and local products, whose period of operation, which began on 4 June, was extended until 12 September.
Recall that the stage of Anima-Te was installed in Devesa Park, outdoors, in a limited area and prepared to receive about 882 people with all safety conditions. In anticipation of 2020, the space was distinguished with the seal "Clean & Safe", awarded by Turismo de Portugal and the Inspectorate General of Cultural Activities.