Humor, commentary, choreography and a surge of music will color the premiere as the V Valencia Performing Arts Awards take over the Alicante Main Theater next Monday. The event aims to present awards that connect with a shared thread, weaving a musical portrait of the city through traditional songs reimagined in contemporary language and through scenes that breathe life into elements from past performances that might otherwise have faded away.
“We redefine the present by honoring the past,” explains Joanfra Rozalén, the creative mind assembling this puzzle. He guides a show within a show produced by his company La Dependent from Alcoy, with the aspiration that the project becomes a single, unified performing arts festival. A total of 19 awards, granted by the Ministry of Culture, will highlight outstanding work across categories. “Galas are moments when you never quite know what will unfold,” Rozalén notes.
Raquel Tamarit, Carmen Giménez-Morte and Juanfra Rozalén attended the Honor Award ceremony, underscoring the festive mood around this milestone for the city and for the festival program.
Focusing on the premiere and pursuing a musical approach, the stage professional says the show aims to present Alicante as a living, musical presence. The city will be suggested through music and imagery that evoke familiar scenes and sounds, rather than offering a dry, documentary view of Alicante. Two longtime composers, Luis Ivars and John Xavier, contribute songs deeply rooted in Alicante and its surrounding towns, framing the artistic dialogue that drives the evening’s repertoire.
Valencian Performing Arts Honorary Award for Carmen Giménez-Morte
three actors and singers
If the gala’s core is a musical, the presentation must align with that spirit. The show will be led not by individual actresses or solo singers alone, but by three interpreters who blend acting with musical performance to guide the audience through the evening. Victoria Minguez, Marta Chiner and Gloria Sirvent, all from Alicante, bring generations of experience as they headline this collaborative performance. They will be supported by Magician Hugo Aracil from Alcoy, whose magic provides visual bridges within the musical flow.
“We have a fantastic team,” Rozalén adds. Pepa Miralles from La Dependent is in charge of coordinating the cast; Miquel Peidro of Alcoy contributes as the author of The Secret of the Old Bridge and with Acacia 38, bringing his screenwriting expertise to the project alongside his daughter Neus Peidro and Rafael Felipe, who designed some simple yet effective choreography.
Peidro, known for his work in Alcoy on Reynolds projects, has also collaborated on video projections crafted by the renowned Visual Productions, creators of stage visuals and multimedia elements used to enrich the performance arc. This collaboration marks a distinctive blend of humor and contemporary aesthetics that sits at the heart of the festival’s identity.
“The most important thing for us is to present a show that carries a strong dose of humor. It should not be melancholic or heavy with longing,” Rozalén states. “It’s playful, current, and visually powerful; it evokes musical theater while keeping the audience joyful and engaged. It’s a celebration that reflects Valencia’s theater festival’s ambition and the many hands working to shape a gala with these characteristics.”
Rozalén adds a personal note about the festival’s broader mission: to create meaningful achievements and to place performing arts in a setting that respects both artistic integrity and the practical means available. The event seeks to be more than a spectacle; it aims to become a cultural moment that people remember for its warmth, humor and shared sense of discovery.