Results of the Theater Without Borders Competition-Laboratory. Interviews with Participants

On November 24 the final of the "Theater Without Borders" contest/laboratory for young directors, developed by the Creative Industries Federation together with the Theater Biennale and the "Directing Lessons" festival, took place.

Seven young directors were finalists:

- Oleg Bilik

- Artem Galushin 

- Maria Zelinskaya

- Elina Kulikova

- Alexandra Loviannikova

- Elena Nenasheva

- Ilya Kharlanov

The prizes were distributed as follows:

1st place - Artyom Galushin

2nd place - Elena Nenasheva

3rd place - Elina Kulikova.

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We interviewed the winners, participants and jury.

Artem Galushin, the winner of the contest, about his work on the project: 

"When working on a sketch, the most interesting thing is to look for a new form, a new theatricality. "Theater Without Borders" expands the possibilities of theater, sets new, interesting tasks for the implementation of the play, pushes the search and allows you to do something new. I like it when the actor and the audience are as close to each other as possible, because that is the moment when the audience is immersed in the play, and the action becomes part of a personal experience for them."

Elena Nenasheva, 2nd place, spoke about the challenges of the project:

"The main challenge for us was the theater space, because we plan to stage the play in a pool. It was important for us to tune in to each other and catch the feeling and rhythm of the water. 

In terms of advice for beginning stage directors, you must not be afraid of taking risks and working hard; this combo always brings results. And to also always put on only what really excites you, regardless of whether it's fashionable or not.

Elina Kulikova on the project and possible collaborations in contemporary theater:

"I am more than sure that the project is promising, because it was the collaborative work with representatives of the creative industries that became a valuable resource for the project. All of the things that we suggested, the theater lacks - technological support with new solutions and collaborations. 

I do a lot of freelance projects, and not working as a full-time director in a state theater, I understand that the only economic model of existence for contemporary theater projects are collaborations. That's the future.

"Theater Without Borders" is an opportunity to invent and create without limitations related to censorship, strict timeframes. That way there is no need to compromise. The absence of compromises and the fulfillment of dreams is what makes "Theatre Without Borders".

The finalists of the project shared their thoughts and impressions of the project.

Oleg Bilik on what was the most difficult in the work on the sketch:

"It's always the organizational aspect, i.e. organizing everything and everyone. It is interesting and enjoyable to be engaged in the process of creating, inventing, but the production stuff - this is the hardest. 

And there was also some difficulty with wanting to make everything understandable. Sometimes I wanted to illustrate something, to make it clearer. But then I had to focus back on me feelings, and I think I captured that in the sketch - that I wanted to create feelings, not an illustration.

Ilya Kharlanov about the process of creating the sketch:

"In general, it was quite easy and pleasant to work on, as far as the process itself and the people involved in its creation. Over the course of two ZOOMs, I fell in love with all of the participants. It was hard to break up a three-hour story into a 15-minute sketch, so that its parts spoke as much as the whole and conveyed the same meaning."

Alexandra Loviannikova on the future of theater and collaborations in the creative industries:

"This kind of theater doesn't just have a huge future, it has a huge present. It is important for the theater to develop non-theatrical spaces, changing the viewer's perception of these environments and spaces. 

For example, our play "Theater and Library: The Fox in the Library.” What were its advantages?” It's that when people came to the library, they immediately felt that it was a friendly space and they realized that they have a great library not only with books, but also with a co-working space and Wi-Fi that they hadn’t noticed before. As a result, more people would start going to libraries."

Maria Zelinskaya on her decision to participate in the contest:

"I decided to take part in the competition because, in addition to traditional theater, I like the close contact with an audience that occurs in immersive performances. Plus, I've wanted to do something on the theme of search parties for a long time.

For me, "Theater Without Borders" means new, unfamiliar themes for theater, and a new, almost nonexistent distance from the audience, when the ones who came for the performance are as important as the actors playing it."

Maria Galperina, a judge from the competition, shared her impressions:

"It is a very difficult task to choose for the prize money only three works out of seven strong ones, captured in only 15-minute sketches and turned into almost finished production, all equally deep and unusual. 

I hope that not only the works of the laureates, but all of the nominees will be realized, because they were all done professionally, and you could feel the talent in the written script and the very thorough production in all of them!

We live in a happy time of creative freedom in search of new forms and meanings! I wish good luck and new achievements to all participants of the project!"

Details about the contest are on the website.