At MASA, African performers meet the people who can book them

The 2026 Marché des Arts du Spectacle Africain brought performances and a professional marketplace to Abidjan. Côte d’Ivoire’s government reported 150 artistic groups, 311 programmers from 72 countries and 1,163 business meetings. The event also recorded around 800 promises of contracts, rather than completed deals.

MASA was led by director-general Abou Kamaté, working with artistic companies, festival programmers, agents, venues and event professionals from across the continent and beyond.

MASA matters because touring is a business. Programmers come to discover work they can put on stage elsewhere; choreographers, theatre companies and musicians can meet future buyers and collaborators in one place.

The public performances give the professional marketplace a visible face, connecting the work on stage with the commercial relationships needed to tour it.