Field Learning Tour
Knowledge exchange on outdoor tent festival productions
On Sunday 19 April, MAD 2026 will open its backstage doors to professionals involved in location festivals.
Do you juggle artistic wishes and practical feasibility? Do you travel with a company as a production manager and enjoy sharing your experiences between different festival locations? Have you ever been on a last-minute search for a living chicken or other special items on a touring company's wish list? Then this is the perfect opportunity to meet colleagues, share stories and gain inspiration.
With both feet firmly planted in practice, we provide an operational insight into the production and logistical organisation of the MAD Festival. You will discover how infrastructure, backstage circulation and the caravan village temporarily come together on a single dock. We will engage in conversation and invite you to share your own experiences. How do other festivals organise this? Where are the differences? And what could be more sustainable, efficient or smart? By engaging in open conversation about production methods and logistical choices, we strengthen each other and the professional network behind the scenes.
Field learning tour
Sunday 19 April (10:30 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.)
10:30 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. Coffee & introduction to MAD Festival.
11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. Site tour
12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m. Time for dialogue backstage
1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. We conclude the field learning tour with a delicious vegetarian Sunday lunch backstage. A moment to further exchange ideas and allow new collaborations to emerge.
On Sunday afternoon, you can join the MAD programme directly and enjoy, among other things, the location performances Uitkijkers by Monki or Beyond by Circumstances & Piet Van Dycke in Park Spoor Noord. Discover the full programme here.