The great Festival d’Avignon is guided this year by associate artist Wajdi Mouawad.

You can see his hand in the premiere of Photo-Romance by Lebanese directors Lina Saneh and Rabih Mroué, who have created a piece that explores art in the reality of a Beirut torn apart by conflict. Pippo Delbono (listen to our interview) returns to Avignon to direct La Menzogna, described as a “long cry with multiple intensities”.

The separately organized Festival Off has its genesis in the tumultuous year of 1968 in France, when students took to the streets. Now you can catch the spirit — see live theatrical events throughout the streets of Avignon.

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If jam bands and indie rock are your thing this week, get ready for Rothbury Festival in Michigan. Maybe the coffee and croissants aren’t as good as Avignon’s, but you’ll be helping Michigan thrive for the next round of new cars!

How do you approach a huge festival like Glastonbury? Stick with your favorite stage? Wander aimlessly? Chart a course through all the areas?

Regardless of your festival philosophy you’ll love the line-up for 2009, including spoof rockers Spinal Tap, real rocker Neil Young, and Baaba Maal on the Jazz World stage.

Skirt the edges and find Trash City, the interactive art/burlesque/theatre area where the art collective Mutoid Waste Co has created a giant interactive pinball table.

Same week — different multi-faceted festival: check out Cork Midsummer Festival in Ireland.

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A new temple of dance pairs Strauss & the Beatles, and Stravinsky with bodies flying through the air.

The American Dance Festival will give its new large venue - the Durham Performing Arts Center a real workout, starting with Shen Wei Dance Arts performing Re - (I, II, III), which explores cross-cultural elements of the individual and the community.

Emanuel Gat Dance performs the world premiere duet Winter Variations, with music by Strauss and the Beatles. H. Art Chaos, the provocative Japanese contemporary dance troupe, performs Rite of Spring, complete with aerial feats.

Looking for sound without the body? Travel to one of the best electronic music festivals, the Sonar Festival in Barcelona.

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How to choose between Wilco, Elvis Costello and the Decemberists?

This is just one of the happy dilemmas presented by the Bonnaroo 2009 line-up.

Beyond the headliners you’ll find some great gems, including acoustic guitar duo Rodrigo y Gabriela, and Janeane Garofalo at the Comedy Carnivale.

Bonnaroo continues its greening efforts by offering free drinking water and a direct plug into the local Duck River grid with carbon offsets from the Tennessee Valley Authority.

On the other side of the pond, you can go this week to the Isle of Wight Festival.

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Spoleto Festival USA continues to be one of the Festival leaders in the US.

The cabaret punk-rock operetta Addicted to Bad Ideas: Peter Lorre’s 20th Century, with World/Inferno Friendship Society, is a must-see, directed by last week’s podcast feature Jay Scheib.

Kneehigh Theatre’s blend of physical theatre and original music brings to life Don John, set in 1970s England but inspired by Mozart’s Don Giovanni. The Music in Time series will introduce you to some of the most talented contemporary composers and their music, including Bang-on-a-Can co-founder Julia Wolfe’s piece Cruel Sister and Yumiko Tanaka, who bridges ancient and contemporary Japanese music.

If you are going to Spoleto via New York City, check out the River to River Festival.

While the banking system in Iceland may be bankrupt, the Reykjavik Arts Festival festival presents a complete wealth of culture.

Trio Nordica are known for their emphasis on works by women composers as well as Icelandic compositions. The Living Room Concerts series hosts 25 concerts in 25 homes across Reykjavik, creating a rare intimate setting for performer and audience alike.

Deborah Voigt closes the festival with musical selections ranging from Verdi to Leonard Bernstein. Don’t worry about the money, just sing!

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Queer Up North International Festival in Manchester, UK is the place to see groundbreaking live performing arts.

With a robust commissioning program, the festival is a champion of new work. Billed as the world’s first underwater opera, You Who Will Emerge From the Flood features soprano Juliana Snapper performing at the historic Victoria Baths.

Other highlights include Our Lady J’s Gospel for the Godless, reinventing gospel for everyone.

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If you could travel anywhere in the world this week, where would you go? Paris? Rome? New York? One of the best choices would be Brighton, England. Really. Get to Brighton.

The Brighton Festival always brings together some of the best classics and world premieres in dance, music, and theatre from around the world. This year’s edition is being led by Anish Kapoor, whose Cloud Gate is still one of the best people-watching places on the planet.

In addition to taking in Kapoor’s newest art work, you can also follow Alice in the Walled Garden, check into Finkelstein’s Castle, a one-man operatic thriller, discover Syrian folk-pop with Omar Souleyman, or go on the road — literally — with Spain’s Reial Companyia de Teatre de Catalunya’s Kurva.

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Scientific fact: Laughter is good for your health.

The New Zealand International Comedy Festival is ready to heal you. Hometown boy Te Radars gives a tribute to national heroes with his show entitled Misfits, Failures and Those Who Died Trying, while Emmy award-winner Wayne Brady does what he does best — improvises. His aptly titled show is Making S%!T Up.

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Susan Boyle makes choral music hip.

Cork International Choral Festival is the competitive center of choral music, culminating in the prestigious Fleischmann International Trophy Competition. This year’s competitors range from the traditional approach by the Brigham Young University Singers, to the Finnish group Club for Five, who take on Annie Lennox and the Eurythmics.

Just like Susan Boyle, after the makeover.

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