Maribor Theatre Festival

Every year since 1966, Slovenian theatres have gathered for the Maribor Theatre Festival. This prestigious event, organised by and held at the Slovene National Theatre Maribor, is the largest review of Slovenian theatre production. The festival bestows the Borštnik Ring Award, the highest accolade for theatre actors in Slovenia. Additionally, Borštnik Awards are bestowed for outstanding achievements in directing, acting and other categories.

The 58th Maribor Theatre Festival, 2023. Author: Boštjan Lah

Programme

Each year, the festival presents around 10 new performances in its Competition Programme. These stagings compete for the Borštnik Awards, which include the Borštnik Grand Prix for the best performance as well as awards for best director, best actor, best young actor and other achievements such as set design, costume design, lighting design, musical score and other artistic categories, along with a special jury award. The award of the Association of Theatre Critics and Researchers of Slovenia for the best performance in the previous season is also presented.

The non-competitive Accompanying Programme consists of performances from the previous season, often created by the younger generations of authors whose innovative approaches to creating performances challenge the established concepts and boundaries of theatre. Additionally, performances by international artists and theatre houses are included.

The Maribor Theatre Festival also presents the annual production of the Academy of Theatre, Radio, Film and Television (AGRFT), and it has recently started running an international student programme and a programme for youth.

Women in dough (Žene v testu) (Slovenian National Theatre Drama Ljubljana), awarded by the Association of Theatre Critics and Researchers of Slovenia for the best performance of the previous season, at the 58th Maribor Theatre Festival, 2023. Author: Boštjan Lah

Young Theatre, introductory event, Maribor Theatre Festival 2023. Author: Boštjan Lah

59. Festival Borštnikovo srečanje - napovednik by festivalbs on YouTube

International symposia and conferences

The festival cooperates closely with the Association of Theatre Critics and Researchers of Slovenia to organise a diverse discursive and educational programme dedicated to topics such as festival production, criticism, dramaturgy, archiving and intercultural exchange. It also hosts international symposia and conferences prepared with international partners such as the International Theatre Institute (ITI) and the International Association of Theatre Critics (AICT/IATC).

Virtual exhibitions

Digital multimedia collections presenting recent Borštnik Grand Prix winners and Borštnik Ring laureates have been compiled by the Slovenian Theatre Institute in collaboration with the Novi zato. Institute, Prodok teater TV, Slovenian theatre houses and regional archives. The digital galleries present referential documentary photos, video and audio excerpts accessible to the wider public on the Sigledal.org - Slovene theatre portal.