Performing Arts Global Exchange
Introduction
Each year, a country or region is featured with a selection of artists across multiple disciplines. The program provides fee support directly to nonprofit presenters programming artists from the roster, and presenters host both public performances and community engagements in achieving the program’s goals of cultural exchange and understanding. PAGE will support tours of performing artists from Morocco and South Africa in the 2025-26 performance season.
Presenting international artists offers an opportunity to engage in the rich diversity of cultural expression throughout the world, but it also requires resources that aren’t always available. Travel expenses, visas, and routing are often barriers to presenting international artists, especially in the U.S.’s more remote communities. PAGE seeks to ease some of those burdens for U.S. presenters by working with international curators to identify a region’s most exciting, tour-ready artists and provide grant support to bring them to the U.S.
Eligibility and Schedule
Eligibility
In order to be eligible for this program a presenting organization must:
- Be based anywhere in the United States and its territories (American Samoa, Guam, Northern Marianas Islands, Puerto Rico, and U.S. Virgin Islands).
- Be a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization or a unit of state or local government or Federally recognized Indian tribal government. Units of state or local government must provide a document on official letterhead to confirm status as a government entity. Fiscal sponsorship is not permitted for this program.
- Be in good standing with Mid Atlantic Arts, with no overdue or outstanding required reports and/or grant documents.
- For this program, a presenter is defined as an organization that regularly schedules and engages professional artists to perform before general audiences in its community and manages the related performance logistics as an ongoing and significant component of their organization’s activity.
Schedule
- Wednesday, January 22, 2025, 2:30-3:30pm ET: Roster Artist Share | Register
- Thursday, March 27, 2025: Booking deadline for presenters to contract a Performing Arts Global Exchange artist
- July 1, 2025-June 30, 2026: Project period for Performing Arts Global Exchange (PAGE) subsidy awards to presenters (presentations of PAGE Roster Artists must take place during this period)
Guidelines and Application
Booking Guidelines
The Performing Arts Global Exchange application will be available to presenters recommended by Tour Managers for funding in Spring 2025. Make sure to submit a letter of agreement to the Tour Manager of the Artist/Company you wish to book by no later than March 27, 2025 to receive instructions on the application process.
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A group of female musicians stand and sit holding their instruments.
Current Grantees
Artist Selection
How artists are selected for the PAGE roster:
- Nominators living and working in the region of focus are selected each cycle by Mid Atlantic Arts to provide artist roster suggestions. The nominators have expertise in the performing arts specifically in the selected region.
- Next, feedback on these potential roster artists is gathered via an online survey of U.S. presenters.
- Mid Atlantic Arts staff select the final roster, weighing presenter feedback and program goals.
2025-2026 Artist Roster
Review details of the selected artists below or at this document. Additional artists will be announced in early 2025.
The Leila (Morocco)
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Image: The Leila. Credit: Courtesy of the Artist.
The Leila is a dynamic Moroccan singer and songwriter who brings a fresh and innovative approach to the music scene. Growing up in a conservative environment, she had to fight for the right to live out her passion for music. Blending elements of rock, soul, and traditional Moroccan sounds, she creates a powerful and eclectic musical style that resonates with both modern and traditional audiences. Known for her strong vocals and bold stage presence, The Leila tackles themes of self-expression, empowerment, and societal issues, making her an influential voice in the contemporary Moroccan music landscape. Her unique fusion of genres and authenticity continues to captivate fans and elevate her status as an essential artist. On this tour The Leila will perform music from the album Elghit, an original album that is an echo of her regional roots tinged with the influence of world music and modern rhythms. The album is a mixture of many musical heritages such as Reggada, Arfa, Mechiakha, Gharnati and Rai. The Leila is true to herself, a woman whose voice waltzes between fragility and power. She quickly creates a universe through intelligent songwriting accessible to all and a harmonious blend of the different styles of her region that she mixes with grace and lightness to its rock influences.
Watch: Leila Visa for Music 2020 | Medani – Leila – Fête de la Musique 2020
Traveling: 6 Artists + 1 Tech + 1 Support
Web: Youtube | Facebook | Instagram
To book, contact: Justine Bayod Espoz | justine@ToritoArtists.com
Nomfusi (South Africa)
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Image: Nomfusi. Credit: Emp Cyclone.
Through the power of music, Nomfusi tells evocative stories as seen through the eyes of a township girl growing up in her mother’s house — stories from inside a tiny shack that she wants to share with the world. While the Townships are widely associated with poverty and crime — reflecting times of race wars and South African Apartheid laws — there are all kinds of stories to be found and cultivated for musical inspiration. Transforming into a pint-sized packet of dynamite the moment she picks up a microphone, Nomfusi has given riveting performances across Europe and Canada. She has appeared at prestigious festivals like WOMAD UK, Canada’s AFRIKADEY Festival (performing with Angelique Kidjo), and played to audiences of more than 8,000 at FMM SINES in Portugal and LUGANO JAZZ Festival in Switzerland. She also had the honor of opening for super star Lionel Richie at STIMMEN FESTIVAL in Germany, and starring with Hugh Masekela for South Africa’s “Liberation Day” celebration at the renowned BOZAR Concert Hall in Brussels. In perhaps the most defining moment of her career, Nomfusi was chosen to portray the character of Miriam Makeba in the 2013 film, “Long Walk To Freedom,” about the life of Nelson Mandela.
Watch: Nomfusi Live / South Africa | Nomfusi – Millennium Stage 2023
Traveling: 5 to 7 Artists + 1 Tech + 1 Support
Web: Website | Facebook | Instagram
To book, contact: Bill Smith | bill@riotartists.com
Tarwa N-Tiniri (Morocco)
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Image: Tarwa N-Tiniri. Credit: Courtesy of the Artist.
Formed in Ouarzazate, Morocco, the band’s live performances are a musical journey through time and space, celebrating the desert’s vast expanse and its cultural heritage. The performance features music from their critically acclaimed albums, Azizdeg (2019) and Akal (2024). Audiences will be captivated by the unique blend of traditional Amazigh melodies and North African rhythms, woven seamlessly with global influences such as blues, jazz, reggae, rock, and Gnawa. The show is filled with vibrant energy and poetic storytelling that highlights themes of identity, nature, and resistance, all while preserving the dignity and culture of the desert people. With mesmerizing vocal harmonies, intricate guitar work, and rhythmic percussion, Tarwa N-Tiniri’s concerts offer an unforgettable experience for audiences, transporting them to the heart of the Sahara.
Watch: TARWA N-TINIRI (Official Videoclip) | Tarwa N-Tiniri – Tenere
Traveling: 6 Artists + 1 Support
Web: Website | Facebook | Instagram
To book, contact: Alex Boicel | afromondo@aol.com
Empatheatre (South Africa)
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Image: Empatheatre. Credit: Alet Pretorius.
In a world where marginalized voices are often drowned out by polarized debates and entrenched biases, there is an urgent need for spaces where diverse communities can come together, share their stories, and engage in meaningful dialogue. Empatheatre responds to this need by creating immersive, research-based public storytelling that fosters empathy, understanding, and social change. Touring with two 60-minute works that are paired with a 60-minute audience talkback, presenters are invited to book both works or just one.
The Last Country is an immersive and moving Empatheatre production with a play text drawn from the 30 oral histories of migrant women collected as part of a greater research and advocacy project. The theatre work subtly weaves together the stories of Ofrah from the DRC, MaThwala from Ndwedwe in KwaZulu-Natal, Aamiina from Somalia, and Aneni from Zimbabwe. Sitting in a circle alongside the actors, the audience is made to intimately listen to the four women’s experiences of leaving home and arriving in Durban, where they adopt various strategies to remake a sense of belonging. The Last Country carefully weaves together and parallels the experiences of struggle, pain, humor, hope, and resilience in ways that explore the complexities, commonalities, and differences of migrant women.
Lalela uLwandle (isiZulu for ‘Listen to the Sea’) is an interactive and immersive theatre and public storytelling experience told in the round that makes visible the stories of South African’s living with the ocean that are seldom heard in the public domain. Drawing from seven months of collaborative action research into the lives of different KwaZulu Natal citizens along its multicultural coastline, the production surfaces the lived realities of people involved directly and indirectly with the ocean, as well as creating a new social platform that makes public dialogue possible regarding our collective pressing concerns regarding our ocean’s health. While the production is uniquely South African in its exploration of the rituals, histories and cultural beliefs, its overarching themes of loss, grief and healing ensure it has a broad and universal appeal that connects powerfully with international audiences.
Watch: The Last Country Trailer | Empatheatre (Short Documentary) | Lalela uLwandle Trailer
Traveling: 8 Artists + 1 Support
Web: Youtube | Website | Facebook | Instagram
To book, contact: Justine Bayod Espoz | justine@ToritoArtists.com
Program Nominators
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Photo: Dan Chiorboli. Credit: Courtesy of Dan Chiorboli.
Dan Chiorboli
Currently based in Johannesburg, South Africa, percussionist and producer. Dan Chiorboli was born in Ferrara, Italy and grew up in Durban, South Africa. Dan is a Musician and Producer, Event Conceptualizer and Festival Director with extensive experience in the Business Sector. In addition to his accomplishments as a musician and in the business world, Dan is best known as the Founder and Festival Director of Awesome Africa, the multi-dimensional and pioneering “World Music” festival based in Durban that has featured 191 Pan-African and International artists from 29 countries, as well as 574 South African artists since 1999.
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Brahim El Mazned
Brahim El Mazned has been serving as the Artistic Director of the Timitar Festival of World Music since 2004. This festival, primarily dedicated to Amazigh culture and global folk music, has gained worldwide recognition under his leadership and has evolved into a significant event in the world music scene, attracting approximately half a million spectators annually. In 2014, Brahim El Mazned started Visa For Music, a festival and professional music market exclusively focused on the music industry in Africa and the Middle East. This annual event, held in November in Rabat, Morocco, has since played a pivotal role in promoting regional music talent and fostering industry connections. Brahim’s remarkable contributions led to his selection as one of the top 100 leaders in sustainable cultural development worldwide, as featured in the “Les Aventuriers de la Culture” Guide to Cultural Diversity.
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Photo: Rucera Seethal. Credit: Alet Pretorius.
Rucera Seethal
Based in Johannesburg, South Africa, Rucera Seethal is artistic director of South Africa’s multi-disciplinary National Arts Festival since 2020. She has been programmer manager at the Swiss Arts Council, Pro Helvetia Johannesburg, for six years, responsible for the performing arts portfolio across the Southern African region, and for co-developing and co-adjudicating its regional grant program. Between 2004 and 2011, she was artistic director and production manager at Chimurenga, the award-winning arts, culture, and politics magazine. She has sat on numerous national and international adjudication panels, programs selection teams, and professional panels. More generally, she is interested in featuring feminist perspectives.
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Photo: Khalid Tamer. Credit: Courtesy Khalid Tamer.
Khalid Tamer
Khalid Tamer is a stage director who divides his time between Marrakech and Paris. He has created and managed several festivals, including the Festival au Féminin in Paris, the Ramadan Vigils, and the Voix de Femmes festival in Bamako. In 1998, he created the company Graines de Soleil and began his career as a director. He has 13 creations and productions to his credit, including Philippe Guillotel’s fashion show at the Paris Quartier d’Eté 2001 festival, and L’Avare, a bilingual adaptation of Molière’s work on Commedia dell’Arte stages that was created in residence at the Institut Français in Casablanca and toured throughout Morocco.
Khalid is a tireless ambassador of creativity in Africa and the Francophone world. In 2010 he became an expert for the International Organization of the Francophonie, in 2013 the first Moroccan president of the International Commission of Francophone Theater, from 2014 to 2018 vice-president of the Marrakech Biennale and recently a member of the international artistic committee of MASA. In 2018 he was commissioned by UCLG Africa and the African Union to set up a cultural program on the continent, which would become the first African Capitals of Culture. In 2020, he returned to the Lavoir Moderne Parisien as general director. There, he created the Africapitales Festival, a descendant of the African Capitals of Culture program, to promote diasporas and their countries of origin in the world “in a sustainable, inclusive and united continental dynamic.”
Manage Your Grant
Learn more about managing your Performing Arts Global Exchange grant.
