The Leioa City Council has decided to suspend the XXI edition of Umore Azoka Leioa, the Street Artists Fair that was to take place from May 14 to 17, due to the health risk situation caused by the expansion of COVID-19. The responsibility and safety of the people, both the public and the professionals, have weighed decisively in this decision.
“It is a tough decision, which is difficult to make and that we have tried in every way to avoid, but the current situation leaves no other option. Leioa is a responsible municipality and the safety of the people is above all, ”said Mayor Iban Rodríguez Etxebarria.
This is the first time in the history of this event, after twenty consecutive editions, that it is doomed to a suspension. “Of all the possible options we have considered, this is the hardest and most real. The uncertainty in the face of this pandemic that we are suffering and the possible subsequent conditions, makes it impossible to hold a celebration with the guarantees and effectiveness of previous editions ”have indicated from the organization of Umore Azoka Leioa.
In this sense, the Culture Area of the Leioa City Council has recalled that the prevention measures taken since mid-March had already affected the mobility and preparatory work of the companies. “About 25 premieres were planned and companies have had great difficulties in being able to present their new creations. In addition, many of them had logistical needs, such as structures, scenographies, rehearsals, etc…, which at this point were already very difficult to manage ”.
To this accumulation of circumstances had to be added the unpredictable situation of basic services for the organization of the event, such as accommodation, restaurants, structures, etc …, which are essential for the proper functioning of the fair and which are currently inaccessible.
Faced with this situation, the Leioa City Council has wanted to show its gratitude to the Umore Azoka team and to all the Street Arts Companies involved, for the enormous effort made to try to carry out an initiative that has established itself as a benchmark for the cultural life of the municipality and for the performing arts. Likewise, it deeply regrets the damage that this decision can cause in a sector as sensitive to the current situation as the Street Arts, but expresses its commitment to the future of Umore Azoka Leioa.
“We will raise the theater curtains in the streets, with more enthusiasm if possible so that the artists make us enjoy, see you in …” Umore Azoka Leioa -XXI – 2021 “, is the message that the City Council wanted to launch of Leioa.
