In 1998 Interplay Europe e.V. was founded in Berlin. Its office is in Frankfurt am Main (Chairperson: Henning Fangauf). The work of Interplay Europe is similar to World Interplay. The first two Interplay Europe Festivals took place 1995 and 1998 in Germany, 2000 in Warsaw / Poland, 2002 in Pecs/Hungary and 2004 in Athens/Greece. For more information about Interplay Europe, please visit www.interplay-europe.de Interplay Europe e.V. Schützenstraße 12 D-60311 Frankfurt am Main Tel. +49/69/296661 Interplay@kjtz.de Interplay Europe 2006 Find out what happened at Interplay Europe 2006 through Hannah Dee, Alan Wilkins and Ola Animashawun. Their full reports... From Hannah Dee (Playwright Delegate: England) This year's Interplay Europe Festival took place in Schaan in the beautiful principality of Lichtenstein. With the rugged mountains and the hot and thundery weather as a moody and breathtaking backdrop, over forty young European playwrights and tutors gathered to share, discuss, critique and above all challenge each others work. I was lucky enough to be there as one of the English playwright delegates. As well as reading an array of varied and exciting scripts, we hiked heartily through the Alps to Austria where we were greeted by a rousing brass band, cheered the goals of the world cup, soaked up some local shows both in German and English, sampled lots of the fantastic chocolate and consumed many a coffee and beer and red wine! Best of all though was the opportunity to savour the differences between each other’s diverse theatre cultures. This brought us inspiring insights into how our countries weave theatre into society in distinctive ways. All of us playwrights felt deeply about our plays being accessible to anyone, regardless of their background or nationality and the question of how to achieve this rippled through our debates. It became clear to me as the week went on, that in order for a script to cross continents and arouse an audience’s deeper emotion, the playwright has to be brave enough to anchor their characters, worlds and storylines onto the page with a daring and precise certainty. Only when the writer resists the temptation to be vague and generalized, in the hope that it will appeal to a wider selection of people, can the audience truly engage with the play. They are then free to apply any relevant themes to their own social, political or individual situation. Universality comes from individuality. If we, as the next generation of playwrights are to capture an all embracing truism in our scripts, then it is vital that we each learn to have courage in our own unique voice and trust in the stories that we have the instinctive drive to write. Interplay supplies a creative environment that helps to nourish playwrights from all over the world and brings a vibrant, social element to that which is fundamentally a solitary act. As I wheeled away my suitcase and waved goodbye, I felt supported, enthused and invigorated. And I couldn’t wait to get home and start work on my next play! From Alan Wilkins (Tutor: Traverse Young Writers Group, Scotland) I've never had a problem with Lichtenstein. Not at all. I had an idea it was pleasantly mountainous, small and possibly rather expensive. I just never really thought I'd be there. So when the opportunity came to see it at first hand, as a tutor for the Scottish delegation at Interplay Europe 2006, I did'nt have to think for long. The UK's not a great place to be for the Scots when England are in a World Cup, so a week without newspapers or TV seemed just the thing. Luckily we had two good young writers to take - Rachel Lynn Brodie and Lewis Hetherington from The Traverse Theatre's Young Writers' Group - so on the 18th June the three of us met at Edinburgh Airport, with a bagful of scripts to read and a ten-hour mix of plane, train and post-bus in which to get them read. We arrived, all played out, in the town of Schaan and found our way to the Theater am Kirchplatz. Drinking a cup of coffee here, (the first example of exceptional hospitality and organisation by Georg and Evelyn of ASSITEJ Lichtenstein) I suddenly felt a sense of security. This building seemed to care about theatre. Small, expensive, mountainous Lichtenstein had a healthy theatre culture. Which was about to be invaded. Delegates arrived regularly throughout the day, to be shown into their cloistered accommodation (hotels for the tutors!) and relax before the opening ceremony. By the time Festival Director Henning Fangauf gave the welcomig address he was able to welcome delegates from fifteen countries. The list still brings back memories and smiles: Bulgaria, Croatia, England, Germany, Hungary, Latvia, Lichtenstein, Netherlands, Norway, Scotland, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland and Turkey. I'm still not quite sure what happened for the rest of the week. I can tell you the timetable. We met in tutor groups in the usual Interplay way, usually al fresco in the gardens of the Park Stein-Egerta. We talked about plays, we read from them, we questioned and we listened. Sometimes we thought breakthroughs were made, sometimes we were frustrated. If other groups sounded like they were having too much fun we would respond with premeditated outbursts of applause. Slowly, we began to gel. It wasn't all talking. We saw theatre too; some good, some - well - not so good. The festival had links with the Luaga & Losna festival in the Austrian village of Nenzing, so we walked across the Alps to meet them. After being met by a brass band our young writers had their work read aloud before enjoying beer and a buffet in a working cowshed. It all seemed perfectly normal. There were the one-to-one sessions; opportunities for a playwright to talk about their work with a tutor outwith their base group. At their best, these were genuine dialogues about a shared love for theatre-making - thank you, Radna from the Netherlands, for making me re-read MacBeth after a Scottish education had spoiled it for me. And there was the chat. Against a backdrop of World Cup football (50% of delegations taking part. Not us.) and fuelled by caffeine, alcohol or frozen yoghurt, we chatted. There are a lot of universals out there in theatre land, but a lot of cultural differences too. I began to think that the secret of being a tutor was to want to learn as much as possible. How all this added up to the sum of it's parts I don't know. Talking, going to the theatre, reading plays... there's nothing complicated there. In the sixteenth century, Alchemy was the art of transmuting baser metals into gold. Interplay seems to have found a recipe, or a potion, that works. It takes a lot of different people, makes them do some simple things, and changes their lives. It's European Alchemist-in-Chief, Henning Fangauf, deserves special credit, as does Georg Biedermann. On a personal level, thanks to the Scottish Arts Council. I'm not sure you knew what you were paying for, but believe me, it was worth it. From Ola Animashawun (Tutor: Royal Court Theatre, England) 18 –25 June 2006 The View from the foot of the mountain in Base Group (or should it have been Base Camp) 2 Sunday 18th June I’m in the Alps – for the first time in my life ever – fantastic. I’m on a train from Zurich to Liechtenstein (well just outside actually – the last part of the journey has to be conducted by bus) and it’s hot…really hot…..mountainous, and beautiful with lakes, clear blue water, snow peaked mountain tops, wooden houses, and hardly any people, where are all the people? Even the 3 English playwright delegates I was travelling with have forsaken me, well actually it’s the opposite, I’ve had to go on ahead so I’m not late for the tutor delegates meeting scheduled for 5.00pm local time – one of our party, Tinu missed her flight due to the wonders of the London tube system (no such problems with the trains in Switzerland I can tell you – printed timetable, with all your connections for both trains and buses, timed to the minute, for outward and return journeys, all on one ticket, all one price, all completely reliable, and all conveyed in English – easy, amazing, so smooth, so good, but what’s all this speaking in English about, how am I going to brush up on my elementary standard German, if every time I say Guten tag to someone they smile at me sympathetically and then start talking to me in English?) so Hannah and Daniel have stayed in Zurich as a friendly welcoming committee for the tardy Tinu. So where is Liechtenstein? The official opening dinner and party tried to answer this very fundamental and universal question. First we marched to a field on a very steep incline, where we drank schnapps, re-arranged our clothing for increased ventilation around the neck area, and re-arranged our posture, so we were once again, upright on 2 legs and then 2 men dressed as local agricultural workers introduced us to some cows, wearing very loud cow bells, and then they sang to us in German. Good to hear some native tongues at last, but I couldn’t understand a word, and the question remained unanswered. Next we marched to the Park of Stein Egerta – very beautiful, very peaceful, and an exquisite surrounding. Where 2 men, this time dressed in evening dress and looking rather suspiciously like twin brothers of the agricultural workers, this time spoke to us in German, French, and English, all at the same time simultaneously translating everything themselves as they made their speech – brilliant and highly amusing. Question answered. Liechtenstein is not Switzerland, because Switzerland is over there, on the other side of those mountains there. Neither is Liechtenstein Austria, because Austria is on the other side of those mountains over there. So this is Liechtenstein, here. It’s small, but very pretty, alpine, fresh, warm and welcoming….and then the clouds descended, the rain came, the night fell and we retired to bed ready for a week of work, duly welcomed and filled with anticipation. Monday 19th June More shenanigans with maps as each of the 42 delegates from 12 countries showed and shared and explained where they were from, with the rest of us. What appeared to be a simple, informative, and bonding exercise on paper, actually became quite an interesting political and historical, good – humoured act of provocation – there’s something in the whole maps and geography, and drama I reckon – very interesting. And then the work. Back to the wonderful Park of Stein Egerta, where weather permitting we would spend the rest of the week, sat in it’s sumptuous grounds, in groups, debating the merits and pitfalls of each others’ `work in progress’ plays – whilst sipping water, knocking back gallons of coffee, and munching on copious amounts of fresh fruit. How good does it get? I began our Base Group by asking all 10 members what we hoped to get out of this week. We duly responded in the following way:- To meet many people from many countries. Text development. Creativity, inspiration, and fresh ideas. To know what my generation’s like – a universal feeling for now, to be a contemporary writer for all Europeans. To get energy to write, to be inspired. To read what everyone in Europe is writing about. To discuss the play and to see how to bring something new to it. To discover what aspects of the play are new and to find new ways of communicating and writing. To discuss the play and to find out how other people in Europe tell their stories and write specifically for theatre. To find out if we have to tell stories and to discover how to best use and utilise the medium of theatre. To discover what is happening outside of Turkey. To explore the relationship and connection between writing and acting on stage – how des this relationship work? To find out what young people and actors want from writers. To find out how to improve my play. To meet other writers and improve by reading other people’s plays. To gain insight to different theatre traditions and cultural approaches to theatre. After dinner I officially declare our Base Group as the Base Group with a Heart. Others go off in search of an identity for their Base Groups. Tuesday 20th June Our cultural highlight and outing was a performance in English of `Sparrow Fritz’ written by Rudolf Herfurtner and performed by Theater Katerland, Winterhur from Switzerland. A charming and endearing piece of theatre about overcoming incredible odds, aimed at the younger members of the community. Wednesday 21st June We crossed the border (by coach) and went into Austria. Let us not for get this festival was being co-hosted by the town of Nenzing in Austria – however, we couldn’t all fit into this tiny but perfectly proportioned town – hence the need to occupy and be resident in Schaan. Nenzing provided us with the opportunity to conduct some one to one tutorials with the playwright delegates, allowing the tutors to give valuable intensive and exclusive time and attention to individual writers. We also watched another 2 shows and took part in a debate about theatre for young people and the next generation of new writers, where they are coming from, what they are writing about, and what’s the current landscape and climate like for those people hoping to make a career out of writing. Recognition and identity seemed to be major issues with most of the writers present. Thursday 22nd June Hasan Erkek an Associate Professor in theatre at Anadolu University in Eskisehir, Turkey gave us the low down on the history, origins, and future of Turkish theatre, complete with accompanying notes and dvd, while Festival Director Henning Fangauf from Frankfurt in Germany gave us a whistle stop tour and overview of the current new writing scene in Germany. Two very contrasting yet rich and promising cultural perspectives. As the union of Europe grows ever stronger and expansive I feel it is imperative we feed and nourish our writers as cultural and political commentators, critics, archivists, soothsayers, but most importantly purveyors and creators of the thrill, excitement, and entertainment of live dramatic performance. In the evening some of us went to Schaan City Hall to watch Cinevox Junior Dance Company from Switzerland perform a series of dances from their current repertoire. I passed on this one, preferring instead to conduct another couple of one to one tutorials and then limber up and warm up for the proposed after show dancing party\discotheque - note decks were at the ready in the theatre foyer. Why were we partying and dancing so early, we barely halfway through the programme? I don’t know, but after a relatively slow start, a brilliant time was had by everyone brave enough and mad enough to grace the dance floor – the decks were overridden by a live and direct link to i-tunes ensuring the latest and up to the minute hits were at our disposal and delight – we danced, swayed, pirouetted, Latin, salsa, Slavic, danced in pairs, danced alone, danced en masse, congoed, flamencoed, limboed –you name it we attempted it until the early hours of the morning. Brilliant. Glad I’d done my homework first. Friday 23rd June My final day and an early start – great. Glad I danced the night and the early part of the morning away – who needs sleep when you’re an international playwright’s tutor anyway? Ascent of the Alps then. This was billed as a day of `Nature and Inspiration’ and indeed it was. Approximately 1800m above sea level we traversed an old smuggler’s path up the mountain, through alpine pastures, where at the summit, we crossed from one country into the next, from Liechtenstein into Austria, stopping for the obligatory photograph at the sign post, gingerly straddling the barbed – wire fence with one foot in Liechtenstein the other in Austria. Before going down the mountain on an old alpine path to eat traditional Austrian food, hear poetry, and tie poems to the trees, listen to a traditional Austrian brass band, in traditional Austrian dress, and make short Base Group presentations with extracts of work from people’s plays on the side of the mountain - the freshest open air theatre I have ever experienced – finally ending the excursion with more schnapps (and appropriate re-arrangement of clothing in the neck area for increased ventilation, and re-arranged our posture, so we were once again, upright on 2 legs) and metres and metres of fresh meat and savouries served up in a makeshift buffet in a cowshed….yum. On the way back to Schaan I reflected on, flotsam, fauna, mountain streams with fresh icy cold water, ice rink-sized discs of snow, defiant against the warm radiant sun, goats with cow-bells, cows with….cow bells, electric fences (which at least 2 members of our party had to test if they were really that shocking…and yes they were…ouch!!!) the amazing and extreme pungency of wild garlic ( I’m sure I can still smell it) birds, bees, butterflies, the panoramic view, the mountainside, the mountain top, cross cultural couplings, cross cultural debates, cross cultural perspectives, cross cultural influences, cross cultural alliances, getting lost in the moment, getting lost quite literally, being found, bonding, listening, learning, appreciating, quiet, clouds, descent, ascent, amazing. Thanks must of course go to:- 1\ The towns of Schaan and Nenzing for having us. 2\ Georg Biedermann – President ASSITEJ Liechtenstein and Festival Coordinator - and his brilliant and scarily well-organised and accommodating staff team at the Theater Am Kirchplatz, Liechtenstein 3\ Sabine Wollgens – on behalf of the Luaga & Losna Association, Nenzing 4\ Henning Fangauf – Festival Director – and major driving force and lynchpin behind, in front of, and around Interplay Europe 5\ And finally…..but by no means least - The vision that is Interplay. And a huge THANK YOU must go to Hannah, Alan and Ola for your amazing reports and for giving us a glimpse into Interplay Europe 2006!!