Participants: Anastasia Patlay, Denis Kargaev, Evgenia Shermeneva, Marina Davydova, Maria Agni, Nikita Betekhtin, Polina Borodina, Svetlana Dolya, Yegana Jabbarova, Sergey Davydov, Vanya Zhirkin, Vitaly Chensky, Igor Sergeev, Roman Osminkin, Nana Grinstein, Friederike Meltendorf, Yulia Solovyova.
The catastrophic state of freedom of speech in Russia and the ongoing aggression against Ukraine have not halted the literary process: Russian-language contemporary literature and drama continue to thrive both in exile and within Russia, with fewer and fewer opportunities to be heard.
We ask ourselves: what can Russian-language literature and drama contribute to the European cultural landscape? Why is the perspective of an author writing in Russian important for the German (and, more broadly, European) theatre scene? Why does the Russian-language text remain a voice that describes important experiences, without which the picture would be incomplete? How can authors writing in Russian and Russian-language publishers build connections with the European and German theatre scene?
This roundtable is an attempt to initiate a systematic conversation between the book and theater industries, between authors and the venues where their voices can be heard. It is an attempt to begin developing strategies and new initiatives that will make Russian-language texts visible to German theater, and an invaluable opportunity to share existing experiences.
The roundtable will feature Russian literary and theatrical figures living in exile: both those who fled the country after the full-scale invasion of Ukraine and those who have not lived in Russia for a long time.
The roundtable will also feature authors from the pitching program for contemporary Russian-language prose and drama. The literature pitching event will take place immediately after the roundtable, at 16:00 PM, and we look forward to seeing you there as well.
The round table moderators were Yulia Petrovpavlovskaya (the “There is a Meaning” program) and Anastasia Patlai (the “Lyubimovka” festival).
The round table was organized jointly by the Berlin Fair, the publishing program "There is a Sense" and the independent drama festival "Lyubimovka".
Мероприятие пройдет на русском языке.
We are waiting for you and hope for a sincere dialogue.