Q&A – Selected Works Festival 2025
Selected Works Festival (Det Frie Felts Festival) provides audiences the opportunity to experience a comprehensive presentation of newly developed and experimental performing arts, thereby highlighting the independent field of performing arts efforts to advance the art form.
What is “det frie felt”?
"Det frie felt" refers to the many diverse – yet professional – performing arts groups or artists (producers, directors, choreographers, playwrights, writers of theatrical texts, dramaturges, performers, actors, dancers, circus artists, etc.) who are not affiliated with any established theatre or institution and typically work on a project-to-project basis.
When did the festival begin?
Selected Works Festival first took place in 2014 at Dansehallerne. In its early years, the festival was integrated into CPH STAGE, but in 2018 it separated to become an independent festival.
Who is behind the festival?
The interest groups Uafhængige Scenekunstnere (US) and Scenekunstnere Uden Scene (SUS) initiated, organized, and fundraised for the festival from 2014 to 2016. In 2016, Foreningen bag Det Frie Felts Festival (Selected Works Festival) was established, and an artistic leadership was formed to ensure the festival reached its full potential. The festival is curated by 1-3 professional performing artists who has in-depth knowledge of the independent field within Danish performing arts. The curatorial group or individual is appointed by the festival's leadership and approved by the board of the Foreningen bag Det Frie Felts Festival (Selected Works Festival). For the 2025 edition of the festival there is one curator only plus the artistic and administrative leadership participates in the curatorial process to support decisions based on the festival's obligations and goals, ensuring practical aspects are considered, such as whether the production is feasible within the festival's available resources.
The festival is funded by grants from the Danish Arts Foundation, the Copenhagen Municipality's Performing Arts Committee, Aarhus Municipality, and various other foundations.
Why do you host the festival?
Within Denmark's independent performing arts scene, there is a significant number of professional artists who do not have a permanent venue or theatre backing them, nor do they have funding for ongoing operations. They work from project to project, receiving production funding partly from foundations and partly from various support schemes under the Ministry of Culture. They are also often representatives of Danish performing arts abroad.
This is a diverse field of performing arts, often differing in genre from what is presented at established theatres. Production funding for individual projects often only allows for renting a stage for a short period, meaning many works have too short a lifespan and reach too small an audience. Visibility for this part of the performing arts scene is crucial because it is often here that new developments occur, and radical artistic experiments take place.Some performing arts genres live "in the shadows," often falling outside the profiles of established theatres, and a significant portion of the audience may not even know they exist. There are hidden gems here that are frequently overlooked amidst the many entertainment offerings presented to the public.
To date, the festival has collectively presented over 81 works, including readings, to the audience.
Curation and Work Process
Since its inception, the festival has been programmed by a rotating curatorial team that changes annually. This rotation ensures fresh thinking, dynamism, diversity, and variety in the selection of works. For the 2025 festival, a single curator was appointed for the first time. The artistic leadership and the festival's producer were involved in the curation process to ensure diversity and high quality in the selected works, as well as the feasibility of the choices given the festival's resources.
All professional performing artists can apply to participate in the festival via an open call. For the 2025 festival, there were 102 applicants, out of which 14 works were selected. Once the works are chosen, the planning begins. This involves identifying, formulating, and meeting the technical requirements for each piece, which in turn allows for determining the suitable venues for each performance. If a specific location is needed, there can be a lot of logistical work. Following that, PR efforts begin, ticket sales are set up, and the program is launched. The execution of the festival is a massive puzzle, which our technical team coordinates in collaboration with the artists, venues, and other partners involved.What is the vision for the festival? The vision for the festival is to strengthen and raise the visibility of the independent field of performing artists in Denmark, both to the audience, the established performing arts sector, and international stakeholders (festival producers, curators, etc.).
There are many thoughts and ideas about how Selected Works Festival should develop in the future. The ongoing dream is for the festival to continue its activities in both Copenhagen and Aarhus, but also to eventually expand to touring in Odense and Aalborg. In our view, this would contribute to greater diversity in the performing arts offerings nationwide. Selected Works aims to connect with a new, broad audience, thereby also enhancing and strengthening the synergy between the different types of scenes, institutions and professionals in the Danish performing arts scene.
We believe there is still a need for a festival like Selected Works Festival, which focuses entirely on works from the independent field, ensuring access to stage capacity and visibility for the independent field—both nationally and internationally—while also providing a context for the many different professionals in this field.
What is “det frie felt”?
"Det frie felt" refers to the many diverse – yet professional – performing arts groups or artists (producers, directors, choreographers, playwrights, writers of theatrical texts, dramaturges, performers, actors, dancers, circus artists, etc.) who are not affiliated with any established theatre or institution and typically work on a project-to-project basis.
When did the festival begin?
Selected Works Festival first took place in 2014 at Dansehallerne. In its early years, the festival was integrated into CPH STAGE, but in 2018 it separated to become an independent festival.
Who is behind the festival?
The interest groups Uafhængige Scenekunstnere (US) and Scenekunstnere Uden Scene (SUS) initiated, organized, and fundraised for the festival from 2014 to 2016. In 2016, Foreningen bag Det Frie Felts Festival (Selected Works Festival) was established, and an artistic leadership was formed to ensure the festival reached its full potential. The festival is curated by 1-3 professional performing artists who has in-depth knowledge of the independent field within Danish performing arts. The curatorial group or individual is appointed by the festival's leadership and approved by the board of the Foreningen bag Det Frie Felts Festival (Selected Works Festival). For the 2025 edition of the festival there is one curator only plus the artistic and administrative leadership participates in the curatorial process to support decisions based on the festival's obligations and goals, ensuring practical aspects are considered, such as whether the production is feasible within the festival's available resources.
The festival is funded by grants from the Danish Arts Foundation, the Copenhagen Municipality's Performing Arts Committee, Aarhus Municipality, and various other foundations.
Why do you host the festival?
Within Denmark's independent performing arts scene, there is a significant number of professional artists who do not have a permanent venue or theatre backing them, nor do they have funding for ongoing operations. They work from project to project, receiving production funding partly from foundations and partly from various support schemes under the Ministry of Culture. They are also often representatives of Danish performing arts abroad.
This is a diverse field of performing arts, often differing in genre from what is presented at established theatres. Production funding for individual projects often only allows for renting a stage for a short period, meaning many works have too short a lifespan and reach too small an audience. Visibility for this part of the performing arts scene is crucial because it is often here that new developments occur, and radical artistic experiments take place.Some performing arts genres live "in the shadows," often falling outside the profiles of established theatres, and a significant portion of the audience may not even know they exist. There are hidden gems here that are frequently overlooked amidst the many entertainment offerings presented to the public.
To date, the festival has collectively presented over 81 works, including readings, to the audience.
Curation and Work Process
Since its inception, the festival has been programmed by a rotating curatorial team that changes annually. This rotation ensures fresh thinking, dynamism, diversity, and variety in the selection of works. For the 2025 festival, a single curator was appointed for the first time. The artistic leadership and the festival's producer were involved in the curation process to ensure diversity and high quality in the selected works, as well as the feasibility of the choices given the festival's resources.
All professional performing artists can apply to participate in the festival via an open call. For the 2025 festival, there were 102 applicants, out of which 14 works were selected. Once the works are chosen, the planning begins. This involves identifying, formulating, and meeting the technical requirements for each piece, which in turn allows for determining the suitable venues for each performance. If a specific location is needed, there can be a lot of logistical work. Following that, PR efforts begin, ticket sales are set up, and the program is launched. The execution of the festival is a massive puzzle, which our technical team coordinates in collaboration with the artists, venues, and other partners involved.What is the vision for the festival? The vision for the festival is to strengthen and raise the visibility of the independent field of performing artists in Denmark, both to the audience, the established performing arts sector, and international stakeholders (festival producers, curators, etc.).
There are many thoughts and ideas about how Selected Works Festival should develop in the future. The ongoing dream is for the festival to continue its activities in both Copenhagen and Aarhus, but also to eventually expand to touring in Odense and Aalborg. In our view, this would contribute to greater diversity in the performing arts offerings nationwide. Selected Works aims to connect with a new, broad audience, thereby also enhancing and strengthening the synergy between the different types of scenes, institutions and professionals in the Danish performing arts scene.
We believe there is still a need for a festival like Selected Works Festival, which focuses entirely on works from the independent field, ensuring access to stage capacity and visibility for the independent field—both nationally and internationally—while also providing a context for the many different professionals in this field.