Organised by the Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC, from the Portuguese acronym), the 35th Macao Arts Festival (MAF), themed “Growth”, was held from 25 April to 31 May, presenting 15 cross-disciplinary artistic programmes as well as outreach activities, in a total of over 77 sessions. The ticket sales achieved a rate of 85%, while promotional efforts on online platforms reached nearly 5.4 million people.
This edition of the MAF garnered an enthusiastic support from the public. Tickets for a number of programmes were sold out, including Life of Pi, Chris-mas Kingdom, the musical Kiki’s Delivery Service and Raving．Vibration Z. This year, celebrating Macao’s designation as the “Culture City of East Asia 2025”, the Festival offered an array of works spanning from China, Japan and Korea, including the Cantonese Opera Concert Unveiling Harmonious Voices and The Mad Phoenix, the musical Kiki’s Delivery Service, Deling and Cixi and The Drum Shaman, aimed at promoting cultural exchange through an artistic feast.
A number of outreach activities including meet-the-artist sessions, backstage tours, pre-show talks, lectures, workshops, exhibitions and screenings of international stage performances, were also well regarded, integrating culture into daily lives and invigorating the community through arts. The Organiser also promoted the MAF from multiple perspectives through electronic and new media platforms. Among the activities, two thematic games on new media platforms received an enthusiastic response, attracting over 2,000 participants.
This edition of the MAF was once again widely publicised in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. In addition to online promotion by the media and art critics from the Greater Bay Area, the MAF also carried interviews and reports from home and abroad to increase its brand image and reputation, drawing more spectators to participate in the artistic and cultural activities in Macao. During the MAF, various media representatives and art critics from the Greater Bay Area came to Macao to cover the event. The Organiser seeks to leverage Macao’s unique characteristics and rich cultural resources and further expand the influence of branded festivals, thus contributing to the development of a cultural bay.
This edition of the MAF was strongly supported by the Macao Government Tourism Office, TDM - Teledifusão de Macau, Air Macau and MGM. It also counted with the cooperation of various banks and credit card partners, which widely promoted the Festival. In the future, IC will deepen its collaboration with cities in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, leveraging Macao’s role as “One Base”, actively promoting cross-disciplinary collaboration in arts and cultural festivals, thereby fostering the cultural exchanges and integration, fully showcasing the diverse creative and cultural image of Macao, and creating a more influential cultural brand.
