Besmir Bitraku: “Directing has made me a better actor”
Albanian actor Besmir Bitraku on making his directorial debut with the darkly comic Festen, the role of theater in society and the challenges of making theater in Albania.
Tanja Šljivar: “Laughter is a natural response to the absurdity of the world”
Playwright and dramaturg Tanja Šljivar discusses her new play about teenage pregnancy, her upbringing in Banja Luka and writing her debut novel about her time at the National Theatre Belgrade
Maladype Theatre: “We are the black sheep of our theatre society”
For 20 years, Hungary’s Maladype Theatre has sought to maintain independence within an increasingly authoritarian political landscape. Nick Awde talks to them about creative integrity, international touring and turning adversity to advantage.
Hakan Savas Mican: “For a long time migrants were marginalized in theatre”
Writer, director and filmmaker Hakan Savas Mican on making work about the migrant experience and why it’s important to talk about questions of class.
Ivana Vuković: “I write about the things to which I don’t have the answers”
Ivana Vuković, the playwright, screenwriter and dramaturg from Split, discusses Croatia’s housing crisis and the need for artistic solidarity.
Doruntina Basha: “There is a knife in each of our backs”
Playwright Doruntina Basha on her new play Stiffler, the prevalence of femicide in the Balkans and wider society, and the role that art can play in the feminist cause.
Finding Their Voice: making feminist theatre in Albania
Director Klaudia Piroli and performers Vlera Pylla and Enisa Hysa discuss their new show Pa Ze, feminism and what it is to be voiceless.
Uroš Fürst: “Being an actor can be gladiator-like”
Slovenian actor Uroš Fürst on performing Duncan Macmillan’s Every Brilliant Thing, audience interaction and changing attitudes to mental health.
Sasho Blazeski: “The worst thing an artist can do is be a member of a political party”
Macedonian poet and playwright Sasho Blazeski talks to Ivanka Apostolova Baskar about his play Rockers and how a way of life can be an act of rebellion
Pavlica Bajsić Brazzoduro: “Audio creates a whole new dimension”
Croatian theatremaker Pavlica Bajsić Brazzoduro on the development of her particular model of radiophonic theatre and the power of sound