Performing identities and communicating ICH: From local to international strategies

Traditional festivals offer interesting case studies for identity matters because they are at once stable and flexible. This chapter suggests that the most productive analyses concerning the new category of intangible cultural heritage are the ones focusing on the action of UNESCO itself. It presents the ‘Fest-Noz, festive gathering based on the collective practice of international dances of Brittany. On the official UNESCO website, Fest-Noz is presented as following: Fest-Noz is a festive gathering based on the collective practice of traditional Breton dances, accompanied by singing or instrumental music. Fest-Noz was inscribed in 2012 on the UNESCO representative list, at a time when the convention had already entered into force and when the competition was getting sharper and sharper between all the different communities to access the lists. The UNESCO lists proceed to inclusions and exclusions, even if the philosophy of the convention is to be potentially open to any cultural element in the different signatory States Parties.