The prestigious theatre company comes to Andorra, right into the centre of the country, with their impressive show that will set the stage for the journey to the World Cups
The organising committee presents the Ski Festival with a comprehensive program of activities running parallel to the races, designed to combine entertainment and sport perfectly
The theatre company La Fura dels Baus will star at an event on Saturday, 11th March in Andorra’s commercial centre, which will mark the end of the countdown to the Andorra 2023 World Cup Finals. The prestigious theatrical company, known for numerous high-profile tours all over the world and for its legendary performance during the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games at Barcelona ‘92, is coming to the Pyrenean country with an impressive touring show. The street performance “The Journey to the Finals” from La Fura dels Baus, which will start at 19:00h in the Plaza Coprínceps (Co-princes Square) in Escaldes-Engordany and will make its way to the Plaza de la Rotonda (Roundabout Square) in Andorra la Vella. It will serve as encouragement to everyone in Andorra to experience the major sporting event up close that will get started two days later. Children and young people from all the Andorran ski clubs will participate in the procession, to the rhythm of the fusion-percussion group Brincadeira, that will stop at four points along the way. This symbolises the four great milestones that Grandvalira has reached on the Alpine Ski World Cup circuit: the 2012 and 2016 competitions, the 2019 Finals and the new 2023 Finals.
La Fura dels Baus, which has not been to Andorra for more than 20 years, will bring spectacle and notoriety to the event through its transgressive productions that will surprise the public at the different points along the route. This show will be the starting shot that launches a whole program of activities running parallel to the sporting competitions, the Ski Festival, which will run for the whole week of the World Cup Finals. It will offer a wide range of leisure, recreational, fun and entertaining activities designed under the concept of sportainment. In other words, with the aim of creating a festive, relaxed and enjoyable atmosphere so that all audience members, from the most hardcore ski fanatics to the general public, can make the most of the sporting event.
The Ski Festival will officially begin with the opening ceremony at WCF2023, which will take place on the Soldeu platform on Monday, 13th March at 19:30h, although the public will be able to get into the swing of things from 18:00h. After the speeches by the officials, the Avet course will once again become a giant screen that will host a new immersive audio-visual mapping. It will be a show that will take the public on a journey that originates from the Andorran legends to showcase the values of the Grandvalira mountains. The ceremony will culminate in the presentation of the participating countries and disciplines and with a mapping, light, sound and pyrotechnics show.
Another one of the key moments in the Ski Festival will be the Bib draw, which this year will take place on Friday, 17th March at 19:00h at L’Abarset. It is an event designed to enable the public, especially children and young people, to get to know the men and women skiers participating in the World Cup Finals. It will begin with an audio-visual show and will feature some unique individuals, that the spectators will have already met during the inaugural gala, to build excitement at the bibs presentation.
The Ski Festival will also be very prominent in the stands of the two competition venues. There will be a team of animators that, combined with the atmosphere that the charismatic speaker and a DJ will create, will give the public an unforgettable party while they enjoy the sporting spectacle.
What is more, during the weekend, everyone attending the Soldeu races will also be able to enjoy one of the new features of the event: the World Cup Village, an enclosure that will be located on the platform of the Avet slope and that will constantly provide entertainment and activities for all members of the public. It will feature the best brands in ski and sports equipment (Head, Atomic, Rossignol, K2, Dynastar, etc.), stands for non-profit entities and Andorran products, gastronomic offerings, craft, murals and snow graffiti workshops, archery, snowgliss sleds, ski and motorsport e-games, dance shows, stilt walkers, children's shows, etc. In addition, on Saturday at 14:00h, once the races are over, the Los 40 on the road concert will commence. While on Sunday, there will also be three "castellers" (human castle building groups) at the event, who will provide a centrepiece performance at noon, just before the awards ceremony for the World Cup's overall prizes.
The range of recreational activities on offer will be completed with the extensive program of après-ski that L'Abarset will offer throughout the week. This will culminate on Saturday with the performance from the Sevillian DJ Wade, an icon of tech house and dub techno music who has performed in numerous countries in Europe and America and who fills the top electronic music festivals with more than 50,000 people. Finally, on Sunday 19th March the Volunteers Party will be held (World Cup Final Fest), an unmissable event, open to everyone, which will be the opportunity to bid farewell to the World Cup Finals Andorra 2023.
Ski Festival calendar of activities
11th March:
- Street performance “The Journey to the Finals” by La Fura dels Baus (19:00h, Plaça Coprínceps)
13th March:
- Opening ceremony (19:30h (doors open at 18:00h), Soldeu platform)
- Après-ski at L'Abarset with Noe Osses and Levinstein (from 16:00h to 22:00h, El Tarter)
14th March:
- Après-ski at L’Abarset with Swowo and Patricia Mantovani (from 16:00h to 22:00h, El Tarter)
15th March:
- Ski Festival in the stands (10:00h, Àliga slope arrival area, El Tarter)
- Après-ski in L'Abarset with Simply J (from 16:00h to 22:00h, El Tarter)
16th March:
- Ski Festival in the stands (10:00h, Àliga slope arrival area, El Tarter)
- Dominik Paris autograph signing session (following the DH awards ceremony, Hotel Nòrdic terrace, El Tarter)
- Après-ski at L’Abarset with Paskman and Blade (from 16:00h to 22:00h, El Tarter)
17th March:
- Ski Festival in the stands (12:00h, Àliga slope arrival area, El Tarter)
- Public Bibs Draw (19:00h, L’Abarset, El Tarter) and après-ski with Lunnas and Patricia Mantovani
18th March:
- World Cup Village (09:00h to 17:00h, Soldeu platform)
- Ski Festival in the stands (09:00h, Avet slope arrival area, Soldeu)
- Atomic athletes autograph signing session (12:00h, Soldeu World Cup Village)
- Los 40 on the Road concert (14:00h, Soldeu World Cup Village)
- Après-ski at L’Abarset with Wade and Fer Mesa (from 16:00h to 22:00h, El Tarter)
19th March:
- World Cup Village (09:00h to 15:00h, Soldeu platform)
- Ski Festival in the stands (09:00h, Avet slope arrival area, Soldeu)
- Casteller (human castle building) show (prior to the World Cup awards ceremony, 13:00h, Soldeu platform)
- World Cup Final Fest (16:00h, L’Abarset, El Tarter) with DJ Nano and Soundboree