How can today’s youth and students stage ancient drama?The students from Hannover approached this in their own way: their production Dionysus City demonstrates that ancient myths strongly resemble TV soap operas. Passion, revenge, lovers, prophets, family intrigues, and yes, even incest (though that’s not something we typically see in classic soap operas) are all present.
If we didn’t read fairy tales, we wouldn’t know that good wins over evil, love over hate, and diligence over laziness. The prince comes to save the princess, they get married and live happily ever after. But what if the prince doesn’t come? What if the princess doesn’t want to be saved and what if she doesn’t want to wait anymore? In the play Shooting Snow White, Anna Lisa Grebe from the Accademia Dimitri excels as she takes on various roles, from princess to prince to speaking mirror. She holds up the mirror to society, while she, through physical and mental nudity, shows that gender equality doesn’t exist, even in fairytales.
Tuesday 04/01/25 saw the start of the International Festival of Theatre Universities, “Encounter”. It has taken place in Brno for over 30 years, and art universities from different countries meet here annually. This year's audience canlook forward to guest performances from Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Poland, Italy, Switzerland, Germany, Ukraine, and South Korea.
The students of the Academy of Theatre Arts in Krakow brought timeless themes - competition, passion, rivalry, renunciation, and discipline - to the opening day of the festival with their fresh production. These themes formed the main axis of the play, whose plot revolved around a competition between the world's best pianists. Their imaginary ideal was the Polish pianist Fryderyk Chopin. The spirit of this brilliant pianist guided the entire play from beginning to end, in a way that could undoubtedly be described as distinctive and original.
The struggle between the participants of the iconic Chopin Competition, held every five years in Warsaw, is a rewarding subject for a play. An international audience watches the struggle of young and promising pianists from all over the world who, in beautiful dresses and jackets, play the compositions of Fryderyk Chopin by the sweat of their brows to win the competition and secure a stellar career.
Zmagania uczestników kultowego, odbywającego się w Warszawie co 5 lat Konkursu Chopinowskiego to wdzięczny temat na spektakl. Międzynarodowa publiczność patrzy na zmagania młodych i obiecujących pianistów z całego świata, którzy w pięknych sukniach i marynarkach w pocie czoła wykonują utwory Fryderyka Chopina, aby wygrać konkurs i zapewnić sobie drogę do kariery.
How much courage and determination does it take to commit suicide? And what if it wasn't a rebellion, but a simple reflex? More than twenty years ago, Zdeněk Adamec poured petrol on himself, struck a match, and burned to death. If he had only played with fire - as small children do - he might be with us today. A young man who did not know how to live in a society he perceived as superficial and corrupt, he said goodbye in a letter with the words "Please don't make a fool of me". Zdeněk Adamec's production was performed by the DAMU theatre ensemble.
Truth. There are countless variations of it – each of us sees things from a slightly different point of view, so even our perception of truth is always somewhat unique. So is it even possible to find the absolute “real truth”? Six characters try to answer this question after being metaphorically hit by a seventh character (possibly representing the author of the play) with a cue which make them spread all across the stage like balls in a game of billiards.
The 34th edition of the International Festival of Theatre Schools SETKÁNÍ/ENCOUNTER 2024 came to an end on Saturday at the theatre Husa na provázku. The closing ceremony featured an awards ceremony, a dance-off, and videos about the past week.
