Hay Festival Arequipa 2023 – Hay Festival Comunitario Arequipa

The author and musician Giacomo Roncagliolo (Peru) published stories and poems in the former fanzine Morfina between 2011 and 2013. In 2017 he was shortlisted for the Clarín Novel Prize for his book Ámok. His recent novel, El fantástico sueño de aniquilar esto, is a disturbing thriller that explores the addictive power of virtual sexuality and its sinister influence on contemporary desire. In conversation with Jorge Malpartida.

Poetry reading-workshop for women, taking the text by the poet Maggie Smith as a first inspiration to share and create poems together. It is not necessary to have written poetry before, but if participants have written any before, it is suggested they take some to the event. The workshop is moderated by the educator Elisa Guerra, shortlisted for the 2023 Loewe Poetry Prize. Her book Ellas, Afasia won the poetry prize awarded by the magazine Punto de Partida, published by UNAM (Mexico). Guerra runs Las Primeras Letras, a literary podcast-workshop for children.

The girls and boys of the Hogar de Cristo home bring their special energy to the opening of the Hay Festivalito, sharing what they have learned at their dance, music, reading and games workshops. This will be an artistic presentation that invites the audience to participate in a musical performance, created by the performers themselves. With a little imagination, household objects become musical instruments. At the Hogar de Cristo home, the main theme for 2024 is respecting and protecting Mother Earth and all the workshops aim to deal with this very urgent matter. Hogar de Cristo has become involved in the Arequipa initiative “One tree, one life” in order that children understand, in greater depth over time, the significance of and need to protect, water and plant, in every sense of the terms. Music, song and dance are the food of the soul and we invite audiences to enjoy the classic Andean folk of the Hogar de Cristo, El árbol de la queñua es vida.

Find out how Machu Picchu was constructed. Discover all the ingenuity of the Inca civilisation when it came to great architectural achievements. Understand how ancient societies faced technical, geographical and social challenges when carrying out monumental projects such as Machu Picchu. This masterclass inspires and motivates children to seek creative and innovative solutions to face contemporary challenges. Furthermore, it will teach them to appreciate the cultural heritage of humanity and understand the importance of preserving these historical monuments for future generations. With José Carlos de la Puente and Sergio Vilela.

Goldsmiths and artisans were very important figures in pre-Colombian societies. At this event, children can pretend to be one of them, and will have the sacred mission for the day of creating an artistic figure to be offered to the most important deity of the culture that they choose. To do so, they will receive a clay pot, paints and decorative elements. They will have to paint and decorate the pot as they wish, and to finish, they will receive sheets to colour in on the subject of these cultures of the past. This activity aims to boost the creativity and expressive capacity of children, and is related to respect, self-understanding and national identity. With Adriana Roca and Patricia Villanueva.

The book El árbol de Yeniret, written by Cécile Blouin and Stéphanie Borios, tells the story of Yeniret, a migrant girl who, after a long journey, arrives in Peru with her mother, grandmother and sister. The story deals with the difficulties involved for a migrant child in adapting to attending school. The book’s presentation will feature one of the book’s authors, a French-Peruvian writer who specialises in human mobility, and Carla Galdós, an Arequipa-based reading mediator. Together, they will exchange thoughts about migration and the challenges facing migrants when it comes to fitting into their new communities. This event will be run within the framework of the Tejiendo Culturas project, promoted by the UNESCO and OIM offices in Peru, with the goal of promoting social cohesion and intercultural dialogue among refugee, migrant and sheltered communities in Arequipa and Trujillo.

At this dynamic event, we will listen to a storyteller, reflect on new ideas, and send good wishes to the characters in this story. La niña que tejía sonrisas is a book that deals with the lives of migrant families, the reasons they leave their place of origin, and how they integrate into a new culture. With the help of kamishibai –a Japanese storytelling technique that uses paper, pencils, postcards and a lot of creativity to create a play– we will connect with Ema, Nifá and many other new friends.