english annual 2012 1 CONTENT interview festival 3 Untitled. Miriam Kičiňová with dramaturg Martin Kubran 10 Search and discovery of something new. Dáša Čiripová with choreographer Matej Matejka 58 The New Drama Festival showed its true colours 17 Today, I consider more each note. – and the colours were bright. Martina Mašlárová Michaela Mojžišová with composer Peter Zagar 22 Reading unimportant things is not part of my life. Miriam Kičiňová with Daniel Majling 64 The International Theatre Festival Divadelná Nitra analysis and review Appealed to our Conscience. Martina Mašlárová 32 Bartimaeus’s unusual message of faith. 70 More than twice an impulse. Dominika Zaťková Elena Knopová theory/history/critic 75 History of 20th Century Drama. Ján Šimko 84 Music of Languages in the Country of Theaters. 37 A play of varying forms. Tomáš Hájek Stanislava Matejovičová extra 87 Till December 2001. Miro Zwiefelhofer about Studio 12 – space for new drama 44 Seven Days longer than human life. Dária F. Fehérová play 89 Gabriela Alexová: Losers 2 × 2 48 Jánošík, Rózenkrac and Gilderštén get on „tanks” 98 Can the culture support itself? in Žilina. Miro Zwiefelhofer Ingrid Hrubaničová, Zora Jaurová Pavel Graus, Silvester Lavrík 52 A Theatrical Slap in the Face, or Real Misery in Bátovce. Martina Mašlárová 1 cøntent THE CODE TO THE DÁŠA ČIRIPOVÁ SLOVAK THEATRE An Annual 2012 of The challenges of the slovak independent theatre the Theatre Monthly ´kød – konkrétne Several years of stagnation of “stone” theatres caused an unusual situation for the independent o divadle´ in English theatres and independent associations in Slovak theatre. Their activity, production, and last but not least the Editor in Chief quality is not only original and unique, but belong to what the Slovak theatre can present and confront the Dáša Čiripová international theatre scene. The wave of independent theatre in Slovakia is positivly effecting the creation of new aggregation even though the conditions of their existence are uncertain. In general, independent Associate Editors theatres are more agile in dealing with their cultural policy and fi nding their own fi nancial resources. Juraj Hubinák Zuzana A. Ferusová The independent, authorial associations followed in the footsteps of director and the legend of independent Slovak Theatre Uhlár and his Theatre Stoka. (Authorial theatre and Compiled by theatre in which actors collectively participate in the creative process have fought hard for their Dáša Čiripová existence and helped to change the perception of different styles of theatre language.) and Juraj Hubinák The poetics of SkRAT Theatre is based on brief, fragmented dialogues and monologues grasping mostly absurd, tragicomic actions of individuals, thus offering a new form. Theatre SkRAT is one of English Translation Bratislava’s iconic theatres. Theatre SkRAT is based on Stoka’s foundations, it has taken them towards Ivan Lacko a more specifi c, detailed and concentrated comprehension of problems and situations, towards Mira Húsková thematic unity, using elements of documentary theatre in the process. They try to communicate with Lenka Ertlová viewers. Despite the fact that their productions are based on texts, occasionally they experiment. Edited by Debris company engages in motion-physical theatre, action art and performance. Expressive, Conrad Brand contrasting, sensitive or rough, intensifi ed movements hide a powerful testimony and attitude of the authors – boundary between consciousness and unconsciousness, day and night, where Publisher we struggle with ourselves. Their performances present swinging values, doubts, relation of man Divadelný ústav Bratislava and woman, contemplation on issues of identity, truth. In Debris company music, movement, The Theatre Institut fi ne arts, philosophy, non-verbal moves come together and transform into a thought. Bratislava The Theater Pôtoň, active in the small village Bátovce, focuses on the search of interesting and Jakubovo námestie 12 813 57 Bratislava controversial societal themes. Preceding production, fi eld research is conducted including the compilation of Tel.: + 421 2 20487504 authentic material also involving the participation of citizens from that particular environment. By producing Fax: + 421 2 52931571 the plays, they are creating a progressive form of educating both the public and professional artists. e-mail: [email protected] The Theater non.garde focuses on the creation of original theatrical author productions, while www.casopiskod.sk its members are active also in the fi eld of music, literature, movements and visual arts. non. garde www.facebook.com is a young theater open to experimental projects – poems, collages, performances and all these /casopiskod in an environment of symbols, myths transformed into contemporary language. Their esthetic www.theatre.sk relates to the poetics of avant-garde, and shifts those to new forms with current themes. Graphic design, Theatre P.A.T. personifi es the versatile performer Sláva Daubnerová. All her productions are logo & cover different, always widening her own creative and theatrical boundaries. Texts with which she works are ZELENÁ LÚKA s.r.o. also not written as theatre plays. She puts together diaries, personal notes, and letters of a sculptor L. Print Bourgeois, director Madga Husáková- Lokvencová (M.H.L.) and of photographer F. Woodmann, who was DOLIS, s. r. o. Heiner Müller’s ex-wife. The production M.H.L. is a documentary theater, while in the staging of Cells, Some Disordered Geometries and the newest production Untitled she is playing with symbols, fragments of records, abstractions by relying on projections, artistic stylization and mostly electronic music. In 2011, Anténa (Antenna) was founded – it is a network of cultural centers and organizations active in the fi eld of independent contemporary art and culture in Slovakia. Anténa conducts activities aiming to develop a better position of independent culture within the society. Anténa also initiates cooperation, 2 exchange of experiences, creating common projects and it supports the distribution of art productions. intrøduction MIRIAM KIČIŇOVÁ Martin Kubran dramaturge Untitled Where and when did Martin Kubran make the decision to become a dramaturge? Dramaturgy is not a standard study programme – it’s not something high school students are seeking to study. Nobody’s interested in that and besides, it’s in my CV. A dramaturge has to be able to think in When did the transformation parallel universes and be connected to from a theorist to a practitioner – reality at the same time. He has to be a dramaturge – take place? During sensitive to small social and cultural meetings with artists in school? Or changes, while uncompromisingly because of too much time spent at the resisting the wish to take the path Department of Theatre Studies? of cheaper, easier and more relaxing I didn’t spend that much time at the theatre. He has to be on hand for the department. I also studied philosophy at the director and for the actors; he has to Faculty of Arts, but spent no more than two be both the brain and the heart of the semesters there. I realized that the school theatre. A dramaturge thus lives on system didn’t suit me as much and I preferred the edge of two worlds – the practical to study on my own. I liked theatre that was and the theoretical one. Martin based on an interesting philosophical premise, Kubran, dramaturge of the Slovak interconnecting a philosophical issue with National Theatre, speaks about the theatricality and performance. This approach current trends in Slovak theatre (and excited me. I began collaborating with not just the National Theatre), about Rastislav Ballek and Martin Čičvák, and I think the crisis of the theatre language and that back then we were all fascinated by all the ways in which it can be saved. those “new things” they were selling in the Artforum bookstore: titles on semiotics and photo Archive of M. K. hermeneutics, Foucault, new music, new circus, new dance and so on… but not old theatre. 3 interview What kind of theatre more precise, since the mid-1990s. Most audiences fascinates you today? have no idea of the social function theatre plays, In every great theatre culture, there are certain even though this function is crucial and generally things which fascinate and irritate me at the same recognized in the surrounding countries with time. I’m irritated because I am aware of what advanced theatre cultures. It’s not only part we are missing in order to start feeling we’re of the cultural heritage, but also of live culture. part of a theatre culture. I’m fascinated by how In Slovakia, however, live culture sounds like thorough, strong and effective German theatre a calque from another language. I think most is – how engaged it is, and I mean that in the Slovaks associate live culture with yoghurt. most positive connotation of that word. When you say “engaged” in this country, it immediately Your collaboration with Rastislav acquires a bitter taste. In Germany, theatre has Ballek and Martin Čičvák displays had a clearly defi ned agenda since Lessing, Goethe a degree of social engagement and and Schiller. German theatre has always been commitment to the social function a platform for social and political debate, and of theatre. Your choice of marginalized German theatremakers have always been part themes testifi es to it. Do you intend of the discussion. I like theatre that is cheeky and to continue working in this vein? uncompromising in the way it addresses issues We’ll defi nitely continue working in this vein of the past as well as its own tradition, expresses because nothing else seems to be as exciting as to its clear standpoint in a form which may be often make us continue to work in theatre. Working with “incorrect”, yet always conveys a lot of ethos. Martin Čičvák and Rastislav Ballek is like working It is the exact opposite of the “wishy-washy” in real time: we keep returning to certain themes theatre of the bourgeois type, which has always and means of expression and banging our heads dominated stages and auditoriums in this country.