This year’s special guest is Nathalie Marin who will be the conductor of a gala concert of the “Journey of French music in centuries” with guitarist Serge Lopez and Albanian soprano Blerta Zhegu
TIRANA, March 9 – For two consecutive weeks, Albania will host the Francophone Spring, an annual event celebrating French culture and its influence on Albania with a series of activities. The official programme, scheduled for March 12 to 25, will bring a wide range of events such as concerts, exhibitions, theatrical performances, conferences and debates on French literature and culture.
Organized by the French Embassy in Albania and the French Alliance in cooperation with Albanian state institutions, events will be held in Tirana, Elbasan, Shkodra, Korca and Permet.
This year’s events opened on March 9 with a conference on French language by Rennes linguistics professor Henriette Walter at the Aleksander Xhuvani University in Elbasan.
The official programme will kick off on Saturday March 12 with a show at the cultural centre in Durres to be followed by a flower event until March 14 in Elbasan where the Summer Day festivities held around the country originate.
This year’s special guest is Nathalie Marin who will be the conductor of a gala concert of the “Journey of French music in centuries” with guitarist Serge Lopez and Albanian soprano Blerta Zhegu performing at the Academy of Arts in Tirana on March 16.
Carine Borel, the cultural attaché at the French embassy and the coordinator of this year’s event says Albania and France are historically related countries and these connections are preserved even today. The Swiss and Romanian embassies are also participating in the event two song concerts.
The Francophone events are expected to revive cultural life in Albania, further promoting the French culture and arts in the country which numbers thousands of French speakers.
French is widely taught subject in Albanian schools. Several foreign languages schools have also established bilingual Albanian-French sections.
Albania has been a full member of the International Organization of Francophonie since 2006. Last year, the International Day of Francophonie marked the 40th anniversary of the foundation of the International Organization of Francophone.
The International Organisation of La Francophonie represents one of the biggest linguistic zones in the world. Its members share more than just a common language. They also share the humanist values promoted by the French language. The French language and its humanist values represent the two cornerstones on which the International Organisation of La Francophonie is based.
The International Organisation of La Francophonie was created in 1970. Its mission is to embody the active solidarity between its 70 member states and governments (56 members and 14 observers), which together represent over one-third of the United Nations’ member states and account for a population of over 870 million people, including 200 million French speakers.
Francophone Spring events, Opening Week
Saturday, March 12
“Chorus of Words” show by high school students at the Durres Cultural Centre, at 10.00
Flower celebrations by local foreign language high school students at the Elbasan Palace of Sports until March 14, from 10.00 to 18.00
Photo exhibition at the cinema of the southern Permet town, at 12.30
Projection of films and documentaries by the French Alliance in the central square of Elbasan, at 18.30
Screening of “Comment j’ai fêté la fin du monde” movie by Catalin Mitulescu, 2006, at the Marubi Academy and Multimedia centre, Tirana at 19.00
Screening of “L’enfance sous contrôle” film by Marie-Pierre Jaury at the TEN multimedia centre, Myslym Shyri street, Tirana, at 21.00
Sunday, March 13
Performances by the Circus of the Theatre of Metropol, Tirana, at 11.00
Rendez-vous with Permet francophones and francophiles at the Permet Municipality at 17.00
Monday, March 14
“The ten words of Francophonie,” a photo, drawing and creative writing exhibition by students of the Raqi Qiringji high school, at the French Alliance, Korca, at 16.00
Screening of the “Le journal d’Aurélie Laflamme” movie by Christian Laurence, 2010, at the Murubi Film and Multimedia school, at 19.00
Poetry evening at the Metropol Theatre, Tirana, at 20.00
Tuesday, March 15
Literary meeting with Andre Malraux, a French writer, journalist and politician at the Marin Barleti library, Shkodra, at 12.30
Reflection on the 10 words of la Franchophonie by professor Edmond Tupja of the Faculty of Foreign Languages in Tirana. The event will be held at the French Alliance at 18.00.
Screening of “Entre ciel et terre” movie by Sylvain Archambault, 2010 at the Marubi Academy of Film at 19.00
Wednesday, March 16
Poetic afternoon and show at the Memorial International School of Tirana, Tirana, at 13.00
French karaoke at the Shtëpia e Artit (House of Art), Elbasan, at 18.00
Screening of the “François Truffaut, une autobiographie” by Anna Andreu, 2004, at the Marubi Film School, at 19.00
Gala concert of the “Journey of French music in centuries” conducted by Nathalie Marin, with performances by guitarist Serge Lopez and Albanian soprano Blerta Zhegu. The concert organized by the French embassy in cooperation with Albanian public broadcaster RTSH and Rogner Hotel will be held at the Academy of Arts at 19.00
Thursday, March 17
Exhibitions and concerts by high school French students of Shkodra, Tirana, Korca
Concert by the Royal Chamber Music Orchestra of Romania at the A. Z. Cajupi theatre in Korca at 19.00
Screening of the “Mondovino” documentary by Jonathan Nossiter, 2003 at the Marubi Film School at 19.00
