Sants Opening Speech: €192,000 in funding, according to a forum user

Sants Opening Speech: Subsidies, Neighbors, and an Endless Shout

How much public money is behind the opening speech that has gone viral? The most circulated figure is striking: €192,000 over four years in funding for La Calòrica, the company that performed the opening act of the Sants neighborhood's main festival in Barcelona. The speech was delivered by two actresses, Esther López and Júlia Truyol, and was far from ceremonial: criticism of politicians, neighborhood demands, a couple of international mentions, and finally, a long, sustained shout that was difficult to fit on a festival balcony.

The video spread quickly. The scene —two women, a microphone, and an audience torn between laughter and secondhand embarrassment— became perfect material for accusations. What's noteworthy isn't that an opening speech has political content; what's noteworthy is that, this time, someone has put the bill on the table.

What is La Calòrica and how much does it receive in subsidies

La Calòrica is not an improvised group. It was founded in 2010 by a group of friends fresh out of the Institut del Teatre, determined to create ambitious theater that segarro addressed serious issues. Since then, it has premiered titles such as Feísima enfermedad y muy triste gloria de la reina Isabel I, L'Editto Bulgaro, La Nau dels Bojos, and Bluf, with revivals years later. It is, according to an opinion cited in the thread, one of the best theater companies in Catalonia.

So far, the resume. The problem arises when crossing that trajectory with the public coffers. The most repeated figure —€192,000 over four years— corresponds to the company, not the two performers, a nuance that was lost as soon as the dispute began. Another version put the total at €200,000. With either figure, several users took for granted that the event was financed with public money, a point that has not been officially confirmed. And there, at an official neighborhood event, the discussion began.

What the opening speech said: housing, tourism, and international politics

The content, summarized by those who watched the full video, is a catalog of what concerns many Barcelona neighborhoods. Criticism of politicians —with pointed looks at the institutional bench—, criticism for the decline of traditional commerce, and criticism of the housing problem. Specific demands: more and better green spaces, less tourist overcrowding, fewer cruise ships, and a city less like a theme park. Also, a warning about the loss of neighborhood identity.

Two ingredients were added that lit the fuse. The first, an explicit attack on the far-right. The second, a condemnation of Israel's actions in Gaza. The message, at a main festival event, shifted from culture to politics with a microphone. Some see it as the natural role of a committed theater company; others argue that it was neither the place nor the time.

The final shout and the debate on subsidies

The most replayed moment came at the end: a wordless shout that the two actresses sustained longer than a balcony's patience. From there, two interpretations. For some, it is a legitimate performance that uses absurdity to discomfort power, precisely what is expected of contemporary theater. For others, it is proof of an institutional event hijacked by a specific agenda, financed with everyone's money.

And the money argument carries the most weight. If a private company receives such funding, some reason, it makes sense to demand restraint in an official opening speech. The counter-argument is just as simple: subsidized theater has never been neutral, and asking it to be so now is asking it to stop doing its job. No one has moved a cent from one side of the debate to the other.

Sants, tourism, and neighborhood identity

Behind the shout lies a background that is not new. Sants is one of the neighborhoods where tourist pressure and housing costs have been mounting for years. Main festival opening speeches have become, in much of Barcelona, platforms for neighborhood demands: against overcrowding, against racism, in favor of welcoming people. This is not exclusive to this year or this neighborhood.

The difference is the tone and the loudspeaker. What used to be dispensed with a lyrical discourse and some protocol is now shouted from a balcony and ends up with thousands of views. In parallel, the version circulated, without official confirmation, that one of the event's organizers held a municipal institutional position; if confirmed, this detail would add another layer to the issue.

In the end, the shout worked better than any statement. It has made people who can't even agree on the time argue about subsidies, tourism, and housing. That a neighborhood opening speech can achieve this with a microphone and two actresses has its merit. Although, for some messages in the thread, the merit was simply getting paid to shout.