SPILL Festival of Performance is an international festival of live art, activism and performance presenting the work of exceptional artists from around the globe. Created in 2007 by performance maker Robert Pacitti, and produced by Pacitti Company, SPILL is recognised Worldwide as the UK's premier artist-led festival of radical live work. We talked to Robert Pacitti about this sixth edition.

This edition of SPILL takes surrender as its curatorial theme, could you tell us a bit more about what informed this choice? For example were there artists and projects you in mind early on that shaped this decision and if so who and what are they?

This is the sixth edition of SPILL, and the theme of surrender furthers a curatorial tactic that has been building across the past 5 festivals. In 2007 SPILL arrived as a means for us as artists to take space in a cultural landscape that was not obviously offering it up. That inaugural festival wasn’t publicly themed, but if it had been I would have named in On Claiming Space. The second festival was On Agency, building on the first festival and saying ‘now we have this shape for our work, we are claiming it on our own terms’. The third was On Infection, acknowledging that we are all open to external forces, pathogens or infiltrations that require care and resilience for us to stay strong. On Proximity saw SPILL move to Ipswich and question whether the festival was mobile, and if we were then near to, or far from, London. On Contact saw us close the gap by returning to London, bringing the gains and the new opportunities provided by Ipswich back in to the capital. On Surrender sees us questioning whether compromise, or giving in, are really our only options – either as artists or audiences. Of course I assert that they are not! So really it’s been one story unfolding across 7 years. As to how each curation evolves – really I follow my nose. Some planning conversations with artists take a couple of years, and those do inform my macro-thinking about festival shape. But I would never seek to impose a theme on any artist or their practice. It is my job to find meaningful interfaces between the works that SPILL presents, and themes allow me to do that. 

You told us last year that on average two-thirds of your audiences are new to the festival, which is really exciting. Considering that you consistently attract newcomers to the festival, what would this year’s recommendations for them?

I’d say get stuck on in and see as much as possible. Some of it you will love, some of it might irk, some of it may seem totally pointless until, weeks or months later, you realise it’s haunting you. That’s the way of SPILL, it’s not always obvious what’s happening until some time after. So leave your expectations of being easily entertained at the door and risk another way of experiencing new work. In our society of privileging instant gratification and consuming, there is something empowering in claiming a different timeframe for yourself as an audience member – think of it as your very own cultural investment. 

That said, there are works in this edition where you will undoubtedly have a great time there and then. If you want to feel moved by something try Bishi’s song and image spectacular Albion Voice. If you want get lost in something ethereal go to Ray Lee’s mechanical installation Siren. If you want to experience something physically and sonically tough hit Sander & Bowers Animate Objects In Sonic Action. If you want an electric gig to make the hairs on the back of your neck stand up come and hear Scout Niblett play. And if you want to get wet come to see Mouse and stand near the front. There really is loads of great stuff to choose from – overall it’s 126 events across 5 days.

The many events of the festival take place in a variety of spaces across Ipswich including spaces like churches and an old Police Station. How essential is the matching of to the work to a space and not only presenting or performing in ‘official’ arts venues to the ethos of the festival and why?

Since 2007 SPILL has presented the work of over 1,500 amazing artists and companies to audiences well in excess of 150,000, plus a truly vast online audience watching SPILL TV. The festival deliberately takes place at a range of main stage and high profile sites. In London this includes the Barbican and National Theatre Studio, in Ipswich it includes the Town Hall, Jerwood Dance House, and New Wolsey Theatre. But SPILL also prioritises found spaces, work on the street, and artist led locations. The festival responds to what each work requires of it while always trying to leverage ambitious new potential, for both presenting artists and audiences alike. And in Ipswich you can easily walk between them all – bonus!

The SPILL National Platform, which presents and supports the work of newer makers returns this year. Could you tell us about how you choose these artists and what development opportunities there are for them?

In  2009 Pacitti Company launched the SPILL National Platform – an open submissions programme for artists who had been working for less than 3 years professionally, or had only made 2 works before. From the off we interpreted ‘younger’ or ‘emerging’ artist only in relation to how long someone had been making work, and not to do with their physical age. We decided to approach the National Theatre to see if they would house the Platform. They said yes, and this was a game changer, as it immediately gave credence to the idea of a truly national platform. We also evolved a partnership model with our long term colleagues at the Live Art Development Agency who still continue to co deliver the initiative with us. We jointly put together a Platform applications process that was what we would want if we were applying for it ourselves. We used common sense, and respect. I invited a range of experienced folk connected to live art and performance to sit as a selection panel, and together we select Platform artists. 

The SPILL National Platform works as a rapid professional accelerator for the artists involved, and this is in no small part due to the brilliant support of the Jerwood Charitable Foundation. We offer a deep level of service to, and engagement with, the artists taking part. It’s way more than simply presenting them, if they choose to engage – some of them do just literally want a platform and that’s ok. But we create lots of opportunities to network them with each other, offer critical support, peer review, professional development advice, promote their work during and after the festival, and many artists from the Platform tour extensively as a result of their SPILL showings. 

I’ve also created a development pathway into the broader SPILL programme, and began commissioning artists who had taken part in the previous edition of the Platform to make new full works for main stages at the next festival. So artists I did not previously know could apply to show at the Platform, and then find themselves performing new SPILL commissions sometime later. With an artist like Lauren Barri Holstein this was in the next SPILL, and then for a company like GETINTHEBACKOFTHEVAN that’s taken 5 years. So it’s on a case by case basis as to what the fit might be and when it comes.

On the question of financial obstacles facing the arts and festivals like SPILL you previously told us that we are going to need artists to taking the risk of working openly together to succeed collectively – have you experienced increase in collaborative approaches? Do you see the landscape changing in this way?

I think it’s clear to many of us by now that the financial support for new work, and especially experimental work, is going to get worse for some time to come. We have to find ways of working together if we are to survive. There are lots of great initiatives taking place as pockets of strong activity, but are we networked into a cohesive tactical alliance across the board? No I don’t think so. Do we need that? Yes for sure. SPILL may very well look pretty different in a couple of years, along with all sorts of others also having to adapt to survive. It is essential we find ways to stand shoulder to shoulder. It’s going to much get worse across the board and anyone ignoring that is kidding themselves. 

SPILL runs a Think Tank programme alongside the performance schedule to encourage interaction and public discussion – could you tell us about the importance of this to the festival?

SPILL has also always been as much about creating a context for the work, as it has been presenting live events. The SPILL Think Tank element of each festival spans salons, feasts, critical writing, publishing, SPILL TV and more. Each of these has a very clear function in distributing the ideas, energy and potential of the works in SPILL way beyond the actual live festival itself. This is also the work that Pacitti Company presents year round in our Think Tank building in Ipswich. Come and see for yourself sometime – all welcome.
 

SPILL Festival runs in Ipswich from Wednesday 29 October to Sunday 2 November.
Ipswich is just over one hour from London by train, and trains leave regularly from Liverpool Street Station. The town has a range of affordable hotels, most of which are within walking distance of all SPILL venues. The festival offers a range of tickets and passes.