13 International Theatre Kingfestival 17-21 April 2015

International Theatre Kingfestival supports the contemporary theatre productions, paying a special attention to the myth as the unique genre of the world theatre, researching transformation of mythology in different ways: national epos, fantastic stories, fantasies, fairy-tales. Since 1992 Festival program presents shows for two directions — children and youths and separately — for adults, reveals new opportunities of the fantastic stories handling in drama and contemporary dance, puppet theatre, non-verbal and visual theatre. The Festival is eager to broaden the genre borders, introducing the repertory of plays from Bible myths to Scandinavian epos, from modern urban myths to Shakespeare’s plays and contemporary drama and dance. Festival includes special events as readings of contemporary plays for youth, actor’s workshops, exhibition and international laboratory “Young critics — The future of the theatre” for students-graduates from theatre faculty of Russia and Europe.

Russian Center ASSITEJ and International Theatre Kingfestival (Velikiy Novgorod) present a residence

“NEW FACES OF ASSITEJ”

In 2015 the International Association of theatre for children and young people (ASSITEJ) celebrates its 50 years jubilee. The festival and the Russian center ASSITEJ invite young theatre workers who are interested in the developing of the theatre for children and youth (directors, playwrights, managers, theatre specialists) to the meeting in Velikiy Novgorod. Our aim is to combine the efforts, to give a new impulse to the development of the contemporary children theatre, to invite new faces to the theatre union of theatre ASSITEJ and to learn more about each other. Venue of Kingfestival – the space of the festival which presents a various programme of performances for all ages from 1 year to 16 and older – is suitable for discussions and meeting new generations

INTERNATIONAL CREATIVE LABORATORY “YOUNG CRITICS – FUTURE OF THE THEATRE”

THEATRE UNION OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION

State and Public Support Programme for Theatres for Children and Young People under the Auspices of the President of the Russian Federation

with support of Ministry of culture of the Russian Federation

  International creative laboratory “YOUNG CRITICS – FUTURE OF THE THEATRE” has a mission to create space for practice of young theatre specialists-critics, students and graduates of theatre institutes of Russia and Europe as part of the XIII International Theatre Kingfestival.

Presenting an open area for discussions, International creative laboratory “Young critics – future of the theatre” is looking for young theatre critics who need to find a starting creative field for discussions, to establish professional contacts, to get the experience of live communication with the theatre – with directors and actors. The project continues creation of the special area for the research on new theatre tendencies, which started in 2007. International creative laboratory “YOUNG CRITICS – FUTURE OF THE THEATRE” is the discussion space where young critics from Moscow, St. Petersburg, Vilnius (Lithuania), Riga (Latvia), Tartu (Estonia) can communicate with the festival participants about subjects and formats of plays presented in the festival playbill. This is an open dialogue of the younger generation of critics and theatres, presenting their work in various genres. The creative laboratory is a live research process on the modern theatre, where discussion topics arise from performances, and the dialogue form is made by the cooperative creativity of the young critics and festival participants. Awarding the Young Critics Prize “The Other View” is a result of the laboratory.

MODERATOR OF LABORATORY — ALEXEY GONCHARENKO (Moscow, Russia), leading specialist of Department for children and youth theatre, puppet theatre or Theatre Union of The Russian Federation, Ph.D. in History of Arts, member of UNIMA Research Commission).

PARTICIPANTS OF LABORATORY: Ksenia Yarosh (Saint-Petersburg, Russia), Anastasia Trushina (Saint-Petersburg, Russia), Iskakova Gulnara (Moscow, Russia), Arina Dolgikh (Moscow, Russia), Nora Grenina (Riga, Latvia), Darta Cerina (Riga, Latvia), Andrius Jevsejevas (Vilnius, Lithuania), Liisa Pool (Tartu, Estonia), Triinu Sikk (Tartu, Estonia).

MEETING OF FESTIVAL’S DIRECTORS

The festival presents a roundtable of directors of theater festivals. This meeting is the ability to share information about cultural contacts in the field of theater, to learn more about the experience of theater events in different countries and the chance of professional communication on the themes of the festival in the world. The round table was attended by Vanna Piccoli (Lugano, Switzerland), Simon Lovatt (Aberystwyth, Wales, UK), Capo Jaume Gomila (Palma de Mallorca, Spain), Artur Ghukasyan (Yerevan, Armenia).

 International Theatre Kingfestival thanks the Consulate General of Switzerland in Saint Petersburg for support of this culture event.

PROJECT «THEATRE OF TWINCE-CITIES»

Novgorod audience will have a unique opportunity to see two theater companies from two twin-cities of Velikiy Novgorod in framework of Kingfestival. Velikiy Novgorod is the most ancient center of Russian culture, and it has always been famous not only for its own masters, but also for its openness to the culture experience of the world. Project presents two performances of the Theater Bielefeld (“Giraffe’s neck» and «The Sorrows of Young Werther» (Germany), as well as meet with the theater company «LE RUGISSEMENT DE LA LIBELLULE» of Nanterre (France) with performance «One guitar in America.» The aim of the project «Theatre of twin cities» is to present contemporary theatrical culture of different countries and cities with which Novgorod connecting by close relations based on the kind and respect for other cultures.

Open lecture by theatre pedagogue Beate Brieden (Germany)

Open lecture by theatre pedagogue Beate Brieden will be present 20 April (10.00) in Novgorod Stat University. Also after performance of Bielefeld Theatre (Germany) “ THE SORROWS OF YOUNG WERTHER” planning discussion with students and actors by moderator Beate Brieden (venue: theatre “Mali”)

EXHIBITION “THE POLISH PLAYBILL”

The festival continues to meet the audience with the creative findings in the field of playbills of different countries. At the previous festivals we presented Denmark and Switzerland, in 2015 we are glad to show the theatre art of Poland through the visual design.

Fifteen Polish theatre posters – this is the contemporary representation of the visual art in the field of theatre design, its rendering and the art image of performances for the audience. The playbills of drama and puppet theatres, plays for adults and children, festival posters are collected here. It is the collective image of the contemporary theatre design in Poland – the country, which has its own approach to the creative decision of theatre projects.

The Polish center ASSITEJ was helpful to give an opportunity for the XIII International Theatre Kingfestival not only to take a look at Polish designers’ creations, but also to appraise the wide range of creative searches in the field of theatre for all ages.

International Theatre Kingfestival thanks the Polish center ASSITEJ, Wojtek Faruga for personally and The Adam Mickiewicz Institute Culture.Pl (Poland) for the collaboration and for the opportunity to organize this exhibition. The exhibition is open during all the festival days in the foyer of Novgorod Theatre for children and youth “Mali” and is available for all viewers.