The Short Theatre crowd congratulates Silvia Bottiroli and Corinna Humuza on their new appointment, which, starting in 2027, will will see them become the new artistic directors of the Kunstenfestivaldesarts in Brussels – a festival that has been generating and inspiring the European and extra-European contemporary performing arts scene for years. This new adventure rewards Silvia’s valuable professional career. She will continue to be part of the Short Theatre curatorial team in 2026 and accompany the festival, in a principle of constellations, connections, affections, and exchanges that proliferate and nourish the artistic landscape.
Here the festival statement:
“Kunstenfestivaldesarts announces new artistic direction
Following an open call for applications and recruitment process, Kunstenfestivaldesarts is pleased to announce the appointment of Silvia Bottiroli and Corinna Humuza as the festival’s new artistic directors. They will join Frederik Verrote, administrative and financial director, to form a new three-person general management team.
This new duo will succeed Daniel Blanga Gubbay and Dries Douibi, who have led the festival since 2018 and will step down in June 2026 following their final edition in May 2026. The new artistic directors will take up their positions in January 2026 and will be responsible for the programming starting with the 2027 edition.
About the new artistic direction
Silvia Bottiroli is a curator, writer and researcher. She was the artistic director of Santarcangelo Festival (2012-2016) and of DAS Theatre in Amsterdam (2018-2021), curated FUORI! for Emilia Romagna Teatro in Bologna (2022-2023) and is part of the artistic direction of the Short Theatre Festival in Roma. She teaches at Bocconi University in Milano, regularly lectures in institutional and independent programs, and has contributed to a number of international publications, among which the co-editing of the book What Can Theatre Do (BRUNO 2024). Silvia is part of the inaugural Rose Choreographic School at Sadler’s Wells in London (2025–2026), where her research focuses on rhythm as a curatorial principle. Her work is rooted in the belief that artistic practice can open up alternative life-worlds, unfolding at the intersections of performativity, ecologies of the gaze, and emerging political imaginaries.
Corinna Humuza worked as a researcher in the field of Black Studies and Postcolonial Theory at the University of Hamburg and held several teaching positions, most recently as visiting professor at the Dresden University of Fine Arts. She worked at Kampnagel International Center for Fine Arts in Hamburg as assistant to the artistic and general director and since 2021 as the curator of the International Summer Festival Kampnagel, where she produced and presented numerous international works. Her curatorial practice combines a strong sense of community with a joyful spirit, curating works that engage with the urgencies of the present through radical aesthetic approaches.
The recruitment jury and the festival’s board of directors are convinced that the combined experience of Silvia Bottiroli and Corinna Humuza and their strong artistic visions will accompany Kunstenfestivaldesarts in the best possible way in the future.”