Manchester to be guest city at iconic Barcelona festival next year

Manchester has been chosen by its Catalan counterparts to be the first-ever English guest city at next year's event in a move that will see partners from the two cities working closely over the next 12 months to put together a spectacular programme of Mancunian-grown talent in outdoor arts and music for audiences in Barcelona. 

The invitation to be guest city at the festival is regarded as a big coup for Manchester and one that it's hoped will lead to a sustained relationship between the two cities that goes beyond next year. 

It follows a recent visit to Barcelona by a deputation from Manchester that included Leader of Manchester City Council Bev Craig and Deputy Leader of the Council Garry Bridges, for discussions with their Catalan counterparts including Mayor of Barcelona, Jaume Collboni. 

It's further hoped that the year-long cultural partnership will help forge an even closer relationship between the two cities that extends beyond culture into other areas of shared policy interest.  

Councillor Bev Craig, Leader of Manchester City Council, said: "We're honoured to have been invited by Barcelona to be the 2025 guest city at their historic La Mercè Festival. 

"Our two cities share very similar visions and through celebrations like the incredible La Mercè festival and our own Manchester Day and packed programme of year-round city-wide cultural activity, it's clear we both also value the importance of culture and the part it plays in helping build communities, pride and prosperity in our cities.

 "Our city-to-city friendship with Barcelona already spans several decades through various collaborations in culture and sport, as well as in areas like housing, higher education, digital technologies, and sustainability.  We're very much looking forward to now further strengthening our relationship with the city, both through the next year in the run-up to La Mercè 2025, and beyond."

 A Memorandum of Understanding was signed during the visit between the cities - with the Mayor of Barcelona, Jaume Collboni, noting that the two cities share a very similar industrial past with histories that are linked to workers' movements, as well as a present and future with great cultural wealth linked to the creative industries.

The Memorandum - which both Manchester and Barcelona hope will continue after next year - puts the cultural collaboration between the two cities into effect and provides a working framework for artists, organisations and other partners involved, focusing initially on music productions and street arts events for next year's La Mercè festival.

Jaume Collboni, Mayor of Barcelona, said: “We're deeply honoured to invite Manchester to be the guest city for their historic La Mercè in 2025.

"It will be very interesting for the people of Barcelona to discover Manchester’s cultural expression first hand, its music, for which it is known the world over, but also its visual and street arts, sports and theatre.”

The invitation for Manchester to be guest city at next year's La Mercè festival follows a long relationship over many years between cultural organisations in Barcelona and Manchester-based arts organisations XTRAX and Without Walls, and will see XTRAX acting as Creative Director across next year's guest city programme. 

Maggie Clarke, Director at Xtrax said:  “I'm proud to have helped secure Manchester as Guest City for La Mercè festival 2025, a relationship XTRAX has nurtured over many years. Our winning bid focuses on outdoor arts, and we're supporting the Artistic Director of La Mercè street arts festival to select a programme of diverse and ambitious outdoor arts from Manchester to feature in the festival in Barcelona in 2025. 

"XTRAX believes in the importance of outdoor festivals and is committed to international collaboration. Since 2001 we've supported hundreds of artists to showcase their work at international festivals in the UK and around the world. In light of the challenges to European mobility presented by Brexit, I am thrilled that this collaboration with one of Europe’s major outdoor festivals allows us to showcase the variety and quality of work from the UK, and Manchester in particular. We hope this will pave the way for more European collaborations in the years to come.” 

Manchester's contribution to next year's La Mercè will also be closely supported by Without Walls as Co-Curator and Strategic Partner. 

Ralph Kennedy, Chief Executive at Without Walls said: “As an organisation rooted in Manchester, we're immensely proud to be part of the La Mercè Festival in 2025 and to help bring outstanding outdoor work to its audiences next year. 

"Together with XTRAX we look forward to co-curating an outdoor arts programme that celebrates innovation, excellence and international cultural exchange to support and showcase the diversity of artists that reflect the city we live in today.”  

The Manchester music programme for next year's festival will be curated by Manchester-based music organisation Brighter Sounds.

Kate Lowes, Director, Brighter Sound, said: "Manchester is renowned globally for its rich musical heritage and pioneering new artists, and we are delighted to be able to showcase this at Barcelona’s vibrant La Mercè festival in 2025. As a member of the Music Cities network, Manchester is proudly international in its musical outlook and there are exciting opportunities ahead for collaboration with the incredible music scene in Catalonia. We look forward to strengthening the bond between our two cities through our shared love of music at La Mercè, and for years to come."

The collaboration between Manchester and Barcelona as two cities with very similar backgrounds and identities is also being championed by Marketing Manchester, with benefits expected for both cities from the partnership.   

Victoria Braddock, Managing Director at Marketing Manchester, said: “Barcelona’s annual La Mercè Festival is a fantastic showcase of civic pride and inimitable Catalonian culture, and we're honoured that Manchester has been invited to join the event in 2025 as guest city. There are many synergies between Manchester and Barcelona: both vibrant cultural hubs, rich in history, with strong identities, and a shared passion for so much, especially music and sport. This is a perfect city-to-city partnership, and we look forward to bringing our cities even closer together over the coming years.” 

The cultural partnership between the two cities is also being supported by Arts Council England.

 Jen Cleary, Director North and Combined Arts, Arts Council England, said: “We’re delighted to support this unique creative collaboration between Manchester and Barcelona - celebrating and showcasing some of the best outdoor artists and companies in both cities. The partnership opens up new opportunities for international touring and artistic exchange, as well as providing a platform to strengthen civic ties through arts and culture. La Mercè is a major event in the European outdoor arts calendar and we can’t wait to see Manchester take pride of place as the Festival’s Guest City.”