Hay Festival Arequipa 2025 is here! The eleventh edition of the festival in Peru will take place from November 6th to 9th, featuring 99 events and over 130 local, national, and international participants. The form to request free tickets for university students and seniors will be available soon.
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Event 22
Héctor Abad Faciolince in conversation with Jeremías Gamboa
Sensitivity in the face of barbarism
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Teatro Municipal
Héctor Abad Faciolince(Colombia) has been captivating readers for almost 20 years with the book Oblivion, the moving homage to his murdered father. Now his writings bring to us an even more personal event, the 2023 missile attack on a pizzeria in Kramatorsk, in the Donetsk region of the Ukraine. Abad Faciolince was unharmed, but Victoria Amelina (Ucrania), his travel companion and guide, died in the Russian attack. Ahora y en la hora is his report of the events, and a meditation on life, aging, death, war, violence and guilt. In conversatio with Jeremías Gamboa.
LSP Peruvian Sign Language interpretation available
Eduardo Dargent and Susan Neiman in conversation with Pablo Quintanilla
Caviar, woke, left?
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Centro Cultural Peruano Norteamericano (teatro)
Caviar and latte liberals, woke, lefties… all pejorative terms linked to a left wing, and all becoming more and more common. But, what is the woke left? Who are the latte drinkers? In Left Is Not Woke, Susan Neiman (United States) argues that the true progressive spirit —universalism, justice, reason— has broken up into identitarian posturing that is resulting in a new woke conservatism. The political commentator Eduardo Dargent (Peru) analyses the Peruvian version of the phenomenon in Caviar. Del pituco de izquierda al multiverso progre; as an insult, a label or a smokescreen, “caviar” is one of the most effective and persistent threads in the national political discourse. A conversation about works that (de)construct the left, with Pablo Quintanilla.
Simultaneous interpretation from English to Spanish available
This event has taken place
With the support of Instituto Cultural Peruano Alemán
Alonso Ruiz Rosas in conversation with Ignacio Medina
Arequipa taste
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Centro Cultural Peruano Norteamericano (auditorio)
From the emblematic chupe de camarones soup to the essential ocopa, adobo cold cut, stuffed peppers, and all kinds of traditional tastes from the picanterías and kitchens of Arequipa households. The new edition of La gran cocina mestiza de Arequipa, by Alonso Ruiz Rosas —also the author of El recetario de Arequipa—, delves into a unique cuisine and produces a book that is vital for all those who love Arequipa and its cookery. This recipe book is also steeped in the historical context of its flavours, and has now been re-published, over ten years after its first release. The culinary critic Ignacio Medina will season the conversation with Ruiz Rosas.
Pilar Quintana in conversation with Clara Elvira Ospina
Black Night
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Colegio de Arquitectos (auditorio)
In Noche negra, Pilar Quintana (Colombia) returns to the untamed and exuberant Colombian Pacific that she portrayed so convincingly in the acclaimed novel La perra. In her latest book, the protagonist finds herself alone for four days in a setting that is both terrifying and fascinating. She feels threatened not only by nature, but by the people around her. As well as her work as a writer, Quintana has recently edited the second issue of the Biblioteca de Escritoras Colombianas. In conversation with Clara Elvira Ospina.
Claire Bishop in conversation with Heiner Valdivia and Fernando Zvietcovich
What does it mean to look?
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Alianza Francesa de Arequipa
In Artificial Hells, Claire Bishop(United Kingdom) followed the trail of artistic practices that discomfort, interrupt and reconfigure what we understand by seeing. Now, in Disordered Attention, in the context of an economy characterised by programmed distraction, she once again asks what it means to look. Her analysis dismantles the idea of pure contemplation and highlights the power of performance, dance and political interventions to mould a new type of perception: emotional, hybrid and shared. In conversation with Fernando Zvietcovichand Heiner Valdivia.
Simultaneous interpretation from English to Spanish available
Patricia del Río, Gustavo Rodríguez, Natalia Sobrevilla and Dante Trujillo
Five years of Jugo
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Teatro Arequepay
Five years, five topics, five jugos. Jugo (formerly Jugo de Caigua) is five years old, and the jugueros Patricia del Río, Gustavo Rodríguez,Natalia Sobrevilla and Dante Trujillo will celebrate it at the Hay Festival Arequipa. The authors reflect on five of the most important matters of the last half decade. Liquid for us all to reflect on.
The Carpa Librera is a space for reading and listening, where the reading mediators Estefani Bengoa and Sandra Linares Reategui will read children’s books. In a place designed for both young and old —including those who cannot read—, they can enjoy the stories hidden in books, and so perhaps the reading bug will bite them. The Carpa Librera will also have a small mobile library for children, young readers and adults.
What is a book? Starting with this question, the participants in this workshop, given by Anaisa Cornejo, will create new items based on the object-books they have at hand. At first, the pages will be completely blank, but will be given stories by means of collage, and so leave behind their status as objects and become books.
Lead by Ainaí Morales, María Gracia Ríos and Rosario Yori
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Instituto Cultural Peruano Alemán (Aula 5)
The Bitch by Pilar Quintana tells the story of Damaris, a woman who, reacting to the impossibility of ever becoming a mother, decides to adopt a dog. This new relationship allows her to better understand her desires and drives, instincts, motherhood and love. Those attending this event will be able to discuss some passages from the novel, as well as a number of the most important issues it raises and the particular style of Pilar Quintana, a guest at this year’s Hay Festival. The workshop will be aimed at Hispanic Literature students of the PUCP, accompanied by three of the course lecturers:Ainaí Morales, María Gracia Ríos and Rosario Yori.
On the coast, in the Andes and the Amazon, dancing safeguards the steps, rhythms, wardrobes, and characters that honour our origins. There are so many dances in Peru that they could not fit into a book. Baila gathers 25 of them and their main features. It is a starting point that pays homage to our diversity, our nature, and our history. We invite you to the presentation of Baila, a step closer to our cultural heritage. We will enjoy a live reading event coordinated by Arequipa’s Bibliobici, followed by dancing activities for all ages.
Rodrigo Quian Quiroga in conversation with María Fernández Flecha
Understanding the brain
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Teatro Municipal
Rodrigo Quian Quiroga (Argentina) is the discoverer of “concept neurones”, sometimes known as “Grandmother cells”, which activate the recognition of specific concepts, people or images. The neuroscientist explores the human brain in Cosas que nunca creeríais. De la ciencia ficción a la neurociencia, and tells us how the human brain turns scientific advances that once seemed impossible into reality. In conversation with María Fernández Flecha.
LSP Peruvian Sign Language interpretation available
Juan Gabriel Vásquez in conversation with Patricia del Río
Feliza Bursztyn: a woman ahead of her time
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Centro Cultural Peruano Norteamericano (auditorio)
Juan Gabriel Vásquez is one of the most celebrated and interesting authors of contemporary Colombian literature. At this event, he will talk about his most recent book, Los nombres de Feliza, a recreation of the life of the sculptor Feliza Bursztyn, an artist who broke the rules imposed on women by her times. This is a rigorous novel that weaves together art, history and biography. In conversation with Patricia del Río.
Laura G. de Rivera in conversation with María del Milagro Lozada
What the algorithm hides
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Colegio de Arquitectos (auditorio)
We are puppets of the algorithm, although sometimes we don’t realise it. The puppet master is not always artificial intelligence itself, but rather those who pull the strings to predict and mould our behaviour. The science journalist Laura G. de Rivera (Spain) has spent years researching the consequences of this invisible control. In Esclavos del algoritmo she offers a necessary and critical view of the impact of algorithmic systems on our lives. In conversation withMaría del Milagro Lozada
This event has taken place
With the support of Acción Cultural Española, AC/E
María Luisa del Río and Olga Montero Rose in conversation with Clara Elvira Ospina
In private
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Teatro Arequepay
Se busca final feliz,by María Luisa del Río, and Culpa,by Olga Montero Rose, are two intimate, sensitive, tender books with women as the protagonists. The first is a book of stories in which the reader watches María Luisa grow from the time of her birth. The work by Montero Rose is the continuation of Cortejo, and is a journey into the nature of blame, and trying to understand the end of a love that the main character still feels to be alive. In conversatin with Clara Elvira Ospina.
Mathilde Forget in conversation with Verónica Ramírez
Of one’s own will
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Alianza Francesa de Arequipa
Mathilde Forget (France) has been inspired by the events of her own life to write her second novel, De mon plein gré, a short, sharp book about a woman who ends up doubting her own version of the facts. A portrait of a legal system and administrative violence that blames and shames those who seek help, and where the ambiguities of the language used can create a battlefield. In conversation with Verónica Ramírez.
Simultaneous interpretation from French to Spanish available
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Biblioteca Regional Mario Vargas Llosa, Auditorio 2 (2do piso)
Playing with games that already exist is fun, but it isn’t every day that we can experience designing our own, with the excitement of seeing how ideas take shape and sharing them with others. Participants at this workshop with Rodrigo Laguna will design and build a boardgame inspired by an idea that motivates them. An activity that awakens creativity and encourages working together.
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Universidad Católica de Santa María — Instituto Confucio
Listening to the Amazon to learn. Iñigo Maneiro knows the Amazon region well, and brings to us stories that illustrate the problems of not paying due attention to its inhabitants. Maneiro has lived with the Awajún people and has learned about their relationship with birds, and has given us a view of their ancestral worldview in her book Saber escuchar el canto. Relaciones entre aves y humanos en el pueblo awajún. In conversation with Andrea Chanove.
En este taller, Sealito nos invita a explorar el fascinante mundo de la energía mediante experimentos, historias y actividades interactivas. Una propuesta divertida para comprender cómo funciona la electricidad y conocer las energías renovables que cuidan nuestro planeta.
This event has taken place
El Hay Festival Comunitario está patrocinado por LXG. Con el apoyo de SEAL
Carlos Caamaño, Alejandro Castellote and Dante Trujillo in conversation with Gabriel Ruiz Ortega
Celebrating Mario Vargas Llosa
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Centro Cultural Peruano Norteamericano (auditorio)
This year the festival is offering a number of activities in homage to the life and work of Mario Vargas Llosa, including an exhibition by Morgana Vargas Llosa, dedicated to her father, and the publication of a book together with the Fondo de Cultura Económica which compiles the conversations of the Nobel laureate which have taken place at Hay festivals over the years. We meet the exhibition curators, Alejandro Castellote and Carlos Caamaño, and the book’s editor, Dante Trujillo.
This event has taken place
Sponsored by Fundación BBVA and with the support of the Spanish Embassy in Perú and AECID
Laura G. de Rivera and Rodrigo Quian Quiroga in conversation with Layla Hirsh
Talking about artificial intelligence
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Teatro Municipal
Artificial intelligence has come into our vocabularies and our lives, and is here to stay. Yet when we talk about it, what exactly are we talking about? AI goes beyond algorithms, robotics and promises of utopian and/or dystopian futures. Laura G. de Rivera(Spain), author of Esclavos del algoritmo, and Rodrigo Quian Quiroga (Argentina), neuroscientist and the discover of “concept neurones” talk to Layla Hirsh.
LSP Peruvian Sign Language interpretation available
This event has taken place
Sponsored by SURA and with the support of AC/E Acción Cultural Española
