Coliseu Micaelense reflects "openness and embracing soul of Azorean people," stresses Berta Cabral - Communication

Secretaria Regional do Turismo, Mobilidade e Infraestruturas

The Regional Secretary for Tourism, Mobility and Infrastructures, Berta Cabral, stated this Friday in Ponta Delgada that the Coliseu Micaelense has managed, over more than a century, to adapt and be inclusive, making it "a truly plural stage reflecting the openness and embracing soul of the Azorean people."

"The Coliseu has played - and plays - a crucial role in the development of so many generations. It has shaped respect for and involvement in our cultural heritage in terms of social practices, ensuring that our identity remains alive and relevant," declared Berta Cabral. She spoke at the ceremony marking the 107th anniversary of the Coliseu Micaelense, representing the President of the Government of the Azores, José Manuel Bolieiro.

She praised all the "entrepreneurial and fearless people’" who were behind the Coliseu Micaelense and those who have managed to maintain it to this day, which she described as "a temple of the arts, a living symbol of the cultural wealth of the Azores, and a privileged stage where the most eclectic artistic expressions have been represented since the beginning."

Recalling all the cultural activities that the largest concert hall in the Azores hosts throughout the year, she highlighted, as an example, the traditional Grand Carnival Dances which, since 1921, have been a key event in the annual and current programming of Coliseu Micaelense.

Berta Cabral highlighted the importance of preserving "an important heritage, the stage of so many experiences and a place where stories are lived and written," as is the Coliseu Micaelense.

She continued: "This memory reminds us not only to celebrate but also to acknowledge, in a festive atmosphere, the important role that people and organisations have played in stimulating the collective life of Ponta Delgada through this space. Its longevity, which we are celebrating today, is also due to the fact that, over all these decades, it has had the wisdom to reconcile two demands that do not always converge: on the one hand, adapting to the dizzying pace of time and, on the other, respecting its roots and identity."

For Berta Cabral, "in an increasingly globalised world, where cities compete for visibility and recognition, culture emerges as one of the fundamental pillars of their differentiation."

In this regard, she considered that the Coliseu Micaelense is "a kind of a time capsule and also a bridge to the future, a future that must continue to be a symbol of commitment to culture, a place where the artists of today and tomorrow can freely express their art and where the increasingly cosmopolitan public can continue to be an active part of this cultural exchange."

Berta Cabral added that "through the various cultural events taking place in our Region, the Azorean Government has been promoting human nature as one of the Region's most valuable assets in terms of tourism promotion."

"In following a path of promoting Cultural and Creative Tourism for every month of the year, we are on the best track to project, in collaboration with cultural promoters and agents, our roots and open ourselves up to the world, crossing traditions and contemporaneity, being where the past dialogues with the present in the creation of a promising future," he added.

In this specific case, he highlighted the creation of "Azores What's On," a groundbreaking digital agenda for disseminating events on all islands of the archipelago, and one of several projects that have been implemented to boost cultural tourism. 

"Let us be a laboratory for new ideas and projects, where innovation and tradition meet to create more and better culture aimed at new and wider audiences," she said.