ProText 15 ◌ Performance-readings of contemporary Bulgarian plays ◌ June 19 - July 4
We are pleased to present the upcoming 15th anniversary edition of the ProText platform - an initiative dedicated to contemporary playwriting, theatrical practice, and audience engagement. This year, the format will once again bring together artists around unproduced texts, staged readings, and performance-readings.
ProText 15 focuses on contemporary drama and presents a selection of new Bulgarian plays chosen by the Bulgarian committee of the international network EURODRAM. The texts will be staged as performance readings directed by Boris Zafirov, Rostislav Georgiev, and Bogdan Dimitrov.
From June 19 to July 4, four performance readings will be presented in Sofia, Plovdiv, and Kazanlak as part of the platform. We introduce you to the authors Angel Kalev, Ekaterina Georgieva, and Teodora Georgieva and their texts - “Run,” “Life,” and “The Call by the Forest” - in which the personal, the moral, and the social collide and reveal the cost of responsibility, fear, and the necessity of taking a stand.
The anniversary edition of ProText will take place for the first time in Plovdiv, alongside Sofia and Kazanlak, where the platform has traditionally been held.
ProText 15 is part of the “EURODRAM 2026 – Contemporary Bulgarian Drama” project by the “EURODRAM BG” Foundation. Partners of the initiative include the Organization for Contemporary Alternative Art and Culture “36 Monkeys,” the international network EURODRAM, the Goethe-Institut Bulgaria, the Ivan Vazov National Theater, the Toplozentralna Regional Center for Contemporary Arts, and the Lyubomir Kabakchiev Municipal Theater.
The project was implemented with the financial support of the National Culture Fund. With the financial support of the Sofia Culture Program.
◌ Program of performance readings - ProText 15:
June 19, 7:00 p.m., Fargo Club, Plovdiv; June 23, 7:30 p.m., Toplocentrala, Sofia
Author: Angel Kalev
Director: Boris Zafirov
Vision design: Elena Shopova
After every tragedy, we hear: “This could have been prevented.” But is that really the case? And what is the price of intervention or of silence? Angel Kalev’s “Run” follows the story of Ivo - a young man who has run far from home because of differences with his mother. But when he returns, he finds himself in a situation that shakes his notions of right and wrong. The play addresses themes such as domestic violence, fear, guilt, responsibility, and the fine line between “it’s none of my business” and “I have to do something.” This is a story about the silence that kills and the price of running away.
Angel Kalev was born on July 11, 1991, in Sofia. He graduated from the 164th Spanish High School “Miguel de Cervantes” and studied Slavic philology at Sofia University. In 2015, he graduated from NATFA with a degree in "Acting for Puppet Theater" in Prof. Dora Ruskova’s class, and since 2020, he has been pursuing a master’s degree in film directing at NBU. He has performed on the stages of Theater 199, the Sfumato Theater Workshop, the Racho Stoyanov Drama Theater in Gabrovo, the State Puppet Theater in Sliven, and the State Puppet Theater in Gabrovo. Since 2020, he has been a freelance actor, actively working in dubbing and writing plays and screenplays for films and television series.
June 26, 7:30 p.m., Ivan Vazov National Theater, Apostol Karamitev Stage
Author: Ekaterina Georgieva
Director: Rostislav Georgiev
Vision design: Elena Shopova
Ekaterina Georgieva’s play “LIFE” is about two people who, in the midst of their breakup, are confronted with the most paradoxical aspects of their own nature. Despite their inability to connect while they are together, they manage to do so in a special way precisely when their separation occurs. This play is an attempt to explore a dialogue that never took place between the two characters, but also the love between them. The text raises questions about the meaning of starting a family in today’s world, about the deep human need that may or may not lie behind such a decision, as well as the difficulty of connecting with another person while remaining true to one’s own nature.
Ekaterina Georgieva was born in 1989 in Burgas, Bulgaria. She received her secondary education at the Goethe German Language High School. She graduated from NATFA in 2013 from the class of Professor Ivaylo Hristov. Since 2017, she has been a member of the Aleko Konstantinov Satirical Theater troupe. She wrote her first play, “The Lucky One,” in 2019. This was followed by "Free Fall" in 2022 and "Pinecones" in 2023. For the latter, he received the "Ikar" Award in the playwriting category and an "Askeer" nomination in the contemporary Bulgarian drama category.
July 4, 7:30 p.m., “Lyubomir Kabakchiev” Municipal Theater, Kazanlak
Author: Teodora Georgieva
Director: Bogdan Dimitrov
Vision design: Elena Shopova
"The Call by the Forest" explores the alienation between people, their preoccupation with their own problems, and their failure to understand others. The play follows one evening in the life of a family - a mother, father, brother, and sister. An evening that portrays the relationships within a modern family. A picture that raises questions about the new value system, according to which selfishness and arrogance are considered normal human qualities. One evening that forces the father, mother, brother, and sister to make a choice that will determine their future lives. A choice provoked by an encounter with an ancient force that “feeds” on the evil in people’s actions. If it gathers enough power, it will rule the world. Will the ancient force succeed in conquering the world?
Teodora Georgieva is known for her plays, many of which are staged across the country. She was nominated for an “Askeer” award in the category of contemporary Bulgarian drama for the play “Intermediate Zone.” Her works include "The Nightingale" and "Artem," staged at the Sliven State Puppet Theater, "The Brave Tin Soldier" and "The Golden Key" at the "Georgi Mitev" State Puppet Theater in Yambol, "Hansel and Gretel" and "Cinderella" at the "Nikolay Binev" Youth Theater, "Intermediate Zone" at the Sfumato Theater Workshop. He is the author of two novels - "The Homeless Man" and "Erdoria." He received a bachelor’s degree in "Dramaturgy" from NATFA.
Дейността на организацията през 2023 г. се осъществява с финансовата подкрепа на Национален фонд „Култура“, програма „Едногодишен грант“ и „Програма за възстановяване и развитие на частни културни организации“.