The inaugural edition of a new festival, the Biennale of New European Drama, will be held in Belgrade from 23 rd to 29 th June, under the organisation of the Heartefact Fund, a regional foundation that encourages the creation of a free democratic society and European cooperation T he Biennial of New European drama, as a continua- tion of the most important and most prestigious Eu- ropean festival Neue Stücke aus Europa [New Plays from Europe], dedicated to dramatic writing, is a space for the future engagement and a rmation of new authors and poetics. The goal is to utilise this platform, continuous- ly, including between two editions of the festival, to provide space for work, education, the attempts and even mistakes that arise with the experience of the festival itself. Also in fo- cus will be various aspects of production, from setting plays on stage to translating them into other languages and other contexts, which are often extremely important for the life of a play,”says Andrej Nosov, CEO of Heartefact, a regional foun- dation that encourages the creation of a free society and Eu- ropean cooperation, talking to Elevate. In which way does our country recognise and support initiatives like yours? “Heartefact’s initiative found the support of the state, but what I think is that, alongside nancial support, it is also impor- tant to have comprehensive change that would, at systemic level, lead to changes in the setting up and running of theatres in our country. We really desperately need a production fund and a large space for new ideas and productions. Launching the national platform Serbia Creates, which emerged at the
initiative of Prime Minister Brnabić, is a step in that direction.This platform aims to systemically improve the creative in- dustries sector, as well as strengthen- ing cultural diplomacy and positioning Serbia as a country of creative, innova- tive and authentic people and ideas.”
How important is it for Serbia to position itself inter- nationally with these kinds of festivals, but also to pro- mote itself? “Cooperation is the key word. We’ve already collected and systematised the knowhow of the leading stakeholders (writ- ers, dramatists, producers, artistic directors and theatre manag- ers) in dramatic theatre from Europe. The Biennial also emerg- es as a response to the social and political crisis of European ideas. In this collaboration and exchange, the key is to posi- tion Belgrade as a city that represents an important place on the map of European theatres.” The Heartefact Fund is commemorating 10 years of its existence. In your opinion, what are the fund’s most sig- ni cant successes in the previous decade? “Over thirty independent productions, three-digit num- bers of prizes, translations, guest performances and exchang- es with European partners. The most serious competition in contemporary drama texts at the region level, numerous new forms of multimedia and media content, and over a thousand authors and artists who’ve worked with us. Most importantly, we enter our 11th year with a clear idea of the Biennial of New European Drama, as a signi cant and great undertaking and idea that we will develop and lead in our second decade.”
Andrej Nosov, direktor Hartefakta Andrej Nosov, Heartefact CEO
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