From Zach:

 

I’ve been to the Varna festival twice before. In 2015, I attended as part of a team exploring a Bulgarian-American collaboration, and in 2016, I returned to present the immersive theatre piece that emerged from the aforementioned collaboration. 

 

The Varna Festival is organized into three different programs:
 

• Main Program - Bulgarian Selection highlighting some of the best productions from the previous season
   

• Main Program - International Selection, productions complementing the national offerings. This year, there are shows from Italy, France, Belgium, Spain, North Macedonia, and Russia
   

• Showcase Program - comprised of primarily independent, Bulgarian theatre makers, and generally where you’ll find the more experimental productions

 

The festival also includes a parallel program that’s expanded in recent years called Intermezzo - focusing on presenting work that lives somewhere in the space between a music concert and a theatrical performance. 

 

My job here was to write about the shows, and I tried to see as many of the festival offerings as possible. Some productions I didn’t see simply because they conflicted with other performances that looked more promising. Nevertheless, I saw 14 productions in 9 days. I tried to review each on its own merits and within the context/aesthetics of its presentation.

 

I’ve been to the Varna festival twice before. In 2015, I attended as part of a team exploring a Bulgarian-American collaboration, and in 2016, I returned to present the immersive theatre piece that emerged from the aforementioned collaboration. 

 

The Varna Festival is organized into three different programs:
 

• Main Program - Bulgarian Selection highlighting some of the best productions from the previous season
   

• Main Program - International Selection, productions complementing the national offerings. This year, there are shows from Italy, France, Belgium, Spain, North Macedonia, and Russia
   

• Showcase Program comprised of primarily independent, Bulgarian theatre makers and is generally where you’ll find the more experimental productions

 

The festival also includes a parallel program that’s expanded in recent years called Intermezzo - focusing on presenting work that lives somewhere in the space between a music concert and a theatrical performance. 

 

My job here was to write about the shows, and I tried to see as many of the festival offerings as possible. Some productions I didn’t see simply because they conflicted with other performances that looked more promising. Nevertheless, I saw 14 productions in 9 days. I tried to review each on its own merits and within the context/aesthetics of its presentation.