site.btaAlternative Theatre Festival Brings Together Artists from Several Countries in Sofia

The "Alter Ego" alternative theatre festival starts Monday in Sofia, organisers from the "Alma Alter" theatre-laboratory and "4xC" theatre-studio announced.

Once a year, for five days, the stage of Alma Alter brings together non-traditional theatres from several continents, united by their desire to explore theatrical experiment. The shows break the fourth wall and invite the audience to share in the experience of the characters. This year's international guests include artists from Bulgaria, Japan, the Netherlands, Poland, Italy, Wales and the USA, the organisers said.

Two panel discussions are planned on "Alternative Theatre, Alternative to What?" with the festival's official guests: artistic director of Schaubude Berlin Tim Sandweg, and president of the International University Theatre Association Vito Minoia.

The first performance, September, is a one-man show by Georgi Arsov, based on the poem of the same name by Geo Milev.

Arsov’s team describes the show’s atmosphere: "The world is crumbling beneath our feet. The sky is as dark as the thoughts that cannot penetrate the mind. Because there is no consciousness left. Humanity is frozen in a titanic tension, ready to break all the barriers that have existed so far."

The festival creates an intimate and interactive space where the boundaries between participants and audience are blurred. A space not only for aesthetic contemplation, but also for reflection, according to the organisers.