fbpx Festivals | HowlRound Theatre Commons
Howlround Theater Commons Home Page

Festivals

Festivals, often organized within a specific geographic community or around a theme, are a great way for different works to be in conversation with each other. Content in this section primarily focuses around recapping theatre festivals and analyzing multiple works that were featured.

The Latest

Female Stories from Kosovo: How Two Plays Look at the Loneliness of Balkan Women
Essay
Female Stories from Kosovo: How Two Plays Look at the Loneliness of Balkan Women
by verity healey
10 January 2023
Producing Malawi’s First Multidisciplinary Arts Festival
Podcast
Producing Malawi’s First Multidisciplinary Arts Festival
by Fumbani Innot Phiri, Thomas Chibambo
9 January 2023
Exodus and the Autobiography of War at Tbilisi International Festival
Essay
Exodus and the Autobiography of War at Tbilisi International Festival
by Yaşam Özlem Gülseven, Mikheil Charkviani
5 January 2023
Two actors in yellow-green outfits standing over another actor in white lying on a table.
Female Stories from Kosovo: How Two Plays Look at the Loneliness of Balkan Women
Essay

Female Stories from Kosovo: How Two Plays Look at the Loneliness of Balkan Women

10 January 2023

Theatremaker verity healey discusses two plays from Kosovo’s 2022 Theatre Showcase that highlight Balkan women’s stories and struggles.

Critical Stages in Malawian Contemporary Theatre teaser image with the title at the top and a picture of the guest in the middle.
Producing Malawi’s First Multidisciplinary Arts Festival
Podcast

Producing Malawi’s First Multidisciplinary Arts Festival

9 January 2023

When filmmaker Thomas Chibambo founded the Blantyre Arts Festival in 2009, it was Malawi’s first multi-disciplinary arts festival. He joins host Fumbani Innot Phiri, Jr. to discuss the Blantyre Arts Festival’s current plans to better support theatrical performance and his own work to establish an Arts Council in Malawi.

An actor sits on a pure white stage with a white background and a human-sized laptop behind them.
Exodus and the Autobiography of War at Tbilisi International Festival
Essay

Exodus and the Autobiography of War at Tbilisi International Festival

5 January 2023

Yaşam Özlem Gülseven interviews Mikheil Charkviani about his work on Exodus, a production that traded grand historical narratives for granular perspectives on the impact of war in Georgia. Their interview, like the production, hinges on an important question: how do we learn to live with the past?

Critical Stages in Malawian Contemporary Theatre teaser image with the title at the top and a picture of the guest in the middle.
Development of Malawian Theatre
Podcast

Development of Malawian Theatre

A Conversation with Maxwell Chiphinga

9 November 2022

Maxwell Ciphinga, better known as Max DC, has weathered massive changes in the audience, form, and funding of Malawian theatre throughout his four-decade career. In this interview, he shares his perspective on the industry and discusses his policy and producorial work as the president of Malawi’s new National Theatre Association.

Kunafa and Shay Teaser Image.
Buffer Fringe Performing Arts Festival
Podcast

Buffer Fringe Performing Arts Festival

4 October 2022

In this special episode, Marina and Nabra sit down with Lebanese actor, theatremakers, and peacebuilder Raffi Feghali to talk about the Buffer Fringe Festival. Buffer Fringe is an annual festival with a mission for peacebuilding and social justice, organized by Home for Cooperation and situated in the buffer zone in Cyprus. Buffer Fringe runs 7-9 October 2022, presenting three days of international, interdisciplinary, experimental performances under the theme of Pockets (beyond). Join us as we explore improv in Lebanon, experimental theatre in a geographically contentious area, and artistic curation for peacebuilding.

Four actors sit and stare at the ceiling.
The Future Is in Culture
Essay

The Future Is in Culture

A Conversation with Iman Aoun

15 September 2022

Multidisciplinary artist Ash Marinaccio sits down with the co-founder and artistic director of ASHTAR Theatre Iman Aoun to discuss this year’s ASHTAR International Youth Festival in Palestine.

event poster for the roma heroes festival 2022.
Roma Heroes International Theater Festival, Fifth Edition
Independent Theater Hungary logo.
Independent Theater Hungary
Video

Roma Heroes International Theater Festival, Fifth Edition

Presented by the Independent Theater Hungary

Monday 12 September - Friday 16 September 2022
Budapest, Hungary

Independent Theater Hungary presented the Roma Heroes International Theater Festival, Fifth Edition livestreaming on the commons-based, peer-produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv from Monday 12 September to Friday 16 September 2022 at 9 a.m. PDT (Los Angeles, UTC -7) / 11 a.m. CDT (Chicago, UTC -5) / 12 p.m. EDT (New York, UTC -4) / 17:00 BST (London, UTC +1) / 18:00 CEST (Budapest, UTC +2) / 19:00 EEST (Bucharest, UTC +3).

event poster for puppets in the green mountains festival 2022.
Puppets in the Green Mountains 2022
Puppets in the Green Mountains logo.
Puppets in the Green Mountains
Video

Puppets in the Green Mountains 2022

Access Through The Arts Panel Discussions Exploring the Theme of Roots and Wings

Saturday 10 September - Sunday 18 September 2022
United States

Sandglass Theater presented events from the Puppets in the Green Mountains Festival 2022 livestreaming on the global, commons-based, peer-produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Saturday 10 September, Saturday 17 September, and Sunday 18 September 2022.

Five women in dresses drinking tea on stage.
Gathering Momentum: Türkiye’s Independent Theatre in President Erdoğan’s Near-Autocracy
Essay

Gathering Momentum: Türkiye’s Independent Theatre in President Erdoğan’s Near-Autocracy

15 August 2022

verity healey describes the power and significance of independent theatre in Türkiye by sharing her experience at the theatre festival, TheatreIST.

A parade of men women and children carrying a flag.
Side-yard: On the Commons, the Neighborhood, Grief, and Not Making Theatre While Still Making Theatre
Essay

Side-yard: On the Commons, the Neighborhood, Grief, and Not Making Theatre While Still Making Theatre

15 March 2022

Play House is a collectively stewarded performance space near the border of Detroit and Hamtramck that has become a place of convening and creation for the neighborhood. Richard Newman, a co-manager of the space and co-director of The Hinterlands ensemble, traces connections between creative practice, community, grief, and an outdoor ramp at Play House.

An audience sits in a dark red theatre, watching actors in costume perform.
Freedom and Theatre: An International Meditation
Essay

Freedom and Theatre: An International Meditation

24 February 2022

Producing artistic director Kellie Mecleary shares her experience participating in Vaba Lava Narva Theatre Centre’s first International Freedom Theatre Festival in Estonia.

Kampala International Theatre Festival logo.
Kampala International Theatre Festival
Kampala Theatre Festival
Video

Kampala International Theatre Festival

Performances of The 40th Man or the 28th Woman (Iran), Killing Time (Uganda), and panel discussion on artist-centered networks

Wednesday 15 December to Friday 17 December 2021
Kampala, Uganda

The Kampala International Theatre Festival (KITF) is an annual 5-day festival. KITF was launched in November 2014 as a platform to develop professionalism among East African theatre practitioners, connect the East African theatremaking communities with one another and their counterparts from elsewhere. Select performances and a panel discussion livestreaming on the global, commons-based HowlRound TV network Wednesday 15 December to Friday 17 December 2021.

Seven Black actors performing on stage accompanied by the band.
The Shakespeare In Paradise Festival
Essay

The Shakespeare In Paradise Festival

A Celebration of Bahamian Theatre and Performance

23 November 2021

Robert Hubbard sits down with Dr. Nicolette Bethel and Philip A. Burrows to discuss their creation of the annual Shakespeare in Paradise Festival in the Bahamas.

event poster for re encuentro 2021.
Re:Encuentro 2021
LATC
Video

Re:Encuentro 2021

A National Latina/o/x Virtual Theatre Festival Celebrating Contemporary Latina/o/x Theatre In the US

Monday 15 November to Saturday 20 November 2021
United States

The Los Angeles Theatre Center presented Re:Encuentro 2021 livestreaming on the commons-based, peer-produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv from Monday 15 November to Saturday 20 November 2021.

trans plays of remembrance festival poster.
Trans [Plays] of Remembrance
Trans [Plays] of Remembrance Festival
Ohio University division of diversity and inclusion LGBT Center logo.
Ohio University
hollins university logo.
Hollins University
Video

Trans [Plays] of Remembrance

Three Nights of Short Plays and Performances By Trans* Playwrights and Roundtable Discussions with Playwrights, Actors, and Community Members.

Wednesday 17 November to Friday 19 November 2021
United States

Presenting Trans [Plays] of Remembrance livestreamed on the global, commons-based, peer produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv from Wednesday 17 November to Friday 19 November 2021 at 4 p.m. PST (San Francisco, UTC -8) / 6 p.m. CST (Chicago, UTC -6) / 7 p.m. EST (New York, UTC -5).

event poster for the prelude festival 2021.
Prelude 2021: Start Making Sense!
Segal_Centre_Logo
Segal
Center
Video

Prelude 2021: Start Making Sense!

An array of short performances, readings, and screenings, plus conversations with artists across the United States

Monday 25 October to Friday 29 October
United States

The Martin E. Segal Theatre Center at the Graduate Center, CUNY presented its 2021 PRELUDE festival, "Prelude 2021: Start Making Sense!," livestreaming on the commons-based peer produced HowlRound TV network from Monday 25 October to Friday 29 October 2021.

Seven people at a bar table.
Reimagining a Segregated World: Roma Heroes, European Dramas
Essay

Reimagining a Segregated World: Roma Heroes, European Dramas

21 October 2021

Noémi Herczog discusses the need for greater Roma visibility on stage and introduces Roma Heroes: Five European Dramas, a new collection that anthologizes plays from the Independent Theater Hungary’s Roma Heroes International Theater Festival.

event poster for hey neighbor hey you.
Performance: Hey neighbor, hey you! (Romania)
graphic of green box against dark background.
CEVA Educational Center for Performing Arts
Video

Performance: Hey neighbor, hey you! (Romania)

With REACTIV Festival: a laboratory of experiences and experiments in which we aim to rediscover ourselves as individuals and groups

Friday 3 September 2021
Targu Neamt, Romania

The Educational Centre of the Performative Arts CEVA in Targu Neamt, Romania presented a performance of Hey neighbor, hey you! with the REACTIV festival livestreaming on the global, commons-based, peer produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Friday 3 September 2021.

A large, titled puppet depiction of the American designer Robert Moses with two tiny brown-skinned puppets in front.
Puppets Are Immigrants Too
Essay

Puppets Are Immigrants Too

How New York City Turned Ancient Traditions into Cutting-Edge Art

24 August 2021

Jonathan Mandell shares his experience at New York City’s first-ever official Puppet Week.

event poster for ubumuntu arts festival 2021.
2021 UBUMUNTU Arts Festival
Ubumuntu Arts Festival logo.
Ubumuntu Arts Festival
Video

2021 UBUMUNTU Arts Festival

A celebration of arts and humanity

Friday 16 July and Saturday 17 July 2021
Rwanda

Ubumuntu Arts Festival presented Rebirth, their 2021 celebration of arts and humanity livestreaming on the global, commons-based, peer produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Friday 16 July and Saturday 16 July at 9 a.m. PDT (San Francisco, UTC -7) / 12 p.m. EDT (New York, UTC -4) / 6 p.m. CAT (Kigali, UTC +2).

Dice
Future Every Day
Essay

Future Every Day

1 July 2021

Carra Martinez, with thoughts from Justin Favela, Ty Defoe, Ron Berry, and Leyya Tawi, writes about how the future is a structurally minded labor of the everyday.

globe with connecting lines
Festivals for a New Age: Models of Responsiveness, Flexibility and Resistance
Image of a globe and the words International Presenting Commons
The International Presenting Commons (IPC)
Video

Festivals for a New Age: Models of Responsiveness, Flexibility and Resistance

Friday 11 June 2021
United States

The International Presenting Commons (IPC) in partnership with Global Pillow and HowlRound Theatre Commons presents Festivals for a New Age: Models of Responsiveness, Flexibility and Resistance livestreaming on the global, commons-based, peer produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Friday 11 June 2021 at 9:30-11:00 a.m. PDT (San Francisco, UTC -7) / 11:30 a.m. -1:00 p.m. CDT (Chicago, UTC -5) / 12:30-2:00 p.m. EDT (New York, UTC -4).

A map with two-faced performing arts symbols located within the US and in northwestern Europe.
Taking Rural Playwriting International
Essay

Taking Rural Playwriting International

20 May 2021

Jacob Juntunen shares how the MFA playwriting program at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale adapted their new play festival for the online world and how open-access software and streaming platforms helped students at the rural school transcend geography.

Image of four tableaus with people experiencing time passing.
Letters From Warsaw
Essay

Letters From Warsaw

24 March 2021

Marta Keil and Grzegorz Reske share letters from the past and the future, from June 2020 to June 2029, detailing the changes to the theatrical landscape in their hometown of Warsaw, Poland.

four actors onstage
There’s an Array of Theatrical Talent on Display in Kosovo. So Why Won’t Its Government Support It Properly?
Essay

There’s an Array of Theatrical Talent on Display in Kosovo. So Why Won’t Its Government Support It Properly?

25 January 2021

verity healey, who spent time in Kosovo for its Theatre Showcase last October, discusses the precarious nature of Kosovo’s independent theatre sector and shares her thoughts about the plays she saw while visiting.