Contemporary Playwriting Festival
April 24-28
Oct. 4, 2017
The fourth play reading festival “Dramokratija” has started with a week long workshop with playwright from Germany Theresia Walser. Full of ideas and hopes participants are looking forward to meet lecturer from Russia. Sadly, orginizers are very sad to announce that due to political reasons it is going to be not long waited Mikhail Ugarov but another playwright and scripwriter, recommended by M. Ugarov himself, Mikhail Durnenkov.
„Dramokratija“ for the fourth time is inviting young upcoming playwrights to write plays on a certain subject of the year and the present them in public readings in various places in Vilnius. This year there are 27 registered participants who will compete in a selection of who will be able to present their plays next spring, Then they will also be able to invite audiences for a discussion about propaganda and encounters with it in our daily lives.
The participating playwrights are glad they could gain experience in the workshop with the first lecturer, Theresia Walser, writer from Germany. For actress Goda Simonaitytė who is a first time writer, most remarkable in the workshop were tasks and excerises which helped to comprehend the process of writing and the power of specific use of words. “There is a very nice, freeing atmosphere here. There is no pressure and it inspires and makes you create things.” Goda was saying. Austė Urbanavičiūtė, second year student of film directing also was happy to have creative excercises: “I got a lot of advices on structure of text and inspiration to create. The lecturer is open for everything – there is no one right way to write but your own and she helps to find it.”
Organizers of “Dramokratija” were informed that Mikhail Ugarov who had to be lecturer of teh second workshop is listed as a person who is not allowed to leave Russia. With his suggestion upcoming workshop will be held by Mikhail Durnenkov who has worked with M. Ugarov in latter’s established theatre “Teatr.doc”. Recently another theatre event in Vilnius, international theatre festival “Sirens”, has faced a similar situation. “Sirens’” guest, Kiril Serebrenikov, head of Gogol theatre centre in Moscow, had been arrested at the airport. Establisher of “Dramokratija”, playwright Gabrielė Labanauskaitė says that these events only prove how sharp and relevant is this year’s subject of “Dramokratija” - propaganda.
Plays by M. Durnenkov are being produced not only in Russia but in all Europe: Germany, United Kingdom, Finland, Belarus and other countries. In 2016 Yana Ross has produced his play “Lake” which was shown in theatre festival “Sirens” in Vilnius. Works of M. Durnenkov often feature dark humor and sharp uncomfortable questions. In his recent play “War has not started” which is about current situation in Ukraine, the author is saying that war always is next door – in our homes, our streets, our hearts. He analyzes fears and oddities of daily lives. In this play he is asking “Why are are you afraid of the world war if you haven’t fought your own one?”
Participants of “Dramokratija” will be working with M. Durnenkovu on 20th-24th of October. On 4th-8th of December the third workshop with Lithuanian playwright, poetess, writer Gabrielė Labanauskaitė.
Festival is sponsored by Embassy of Germany, Gothe institute.
Festival’s partners: LMTA, LMTA SA, Theatre union.
