3rd NTNG International Forest Festival
10- 20 September
A forest of performances from all around the world,
οpen to all around the globe.
Connect—Join—Share
The 3rd International Forest Festival blazes theatrical trails between people and places, both within Thessaloniki and internationally. The participating artists and theatres from around the world can meet each other and their audiences and build a network for creative exchange.
Given the singular conditions ushered in by the pandemic, the Festival's artistic committee—which consists of Savvas Patsalidis (emeritus professor of Theatre Studies at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, theatre critic), Prodromos Tsinikoris (director, playwright, actor), and Nikos Kapelios (actor at the NTNG)—selected examples of theatrical thought and action which represent the most up-to-date quests of the European and international stage.
The resulting ten-day program is dense and adapted to the needs of this transitional era for theatre and the world, as well as to the issues it raises; the works will be presented onlineand, in one instance, physically on September 10–20, 2021. The full programme and all information is available at:
The Festival programme is divided into three main sections. “International Theatre Stage: Contemporary quests”, which includes six performances from Ireland/UK, France, Brazil and Hungary, showcases a wide range of contemporary theatrical trends and will give audiences the opportunity to enjoy the work of truly outstanding artists. The other two sections are tributes: one to “Contemporary Theatrical Collectives”, which includes three performances by the Zoukak Theatre Company and La Tristura, with Rimini Protokoll participating in parallel with a walking performance—the only ‘live’ participation in this year's Festival. The second tribute, this time to "The female gaze on theatre", includes three productions by female important directors active on the international scene: Lola Arias, Susanne Kennedy and Yael Ronen.
This year, the NTNG is honoured to be hosting and incorporating the 19th Festival of the Union of European Theatres, an organization of which the NTNG has been a member since 1996, into the programme of the 3rd International Forest Festival, with the participation of eight productions by important European theatres.
Productions from the National Stary Theater of Krakow the Teatro Nacional São João, the National Theatre (Prague), the Piccolo Teatro di Milano, the Teatro di Roma, the Luxembourg National Theatre, the Hungarian Opera House of Cluj and the Jaffa Theatre are to be shown online in a first for Greece, and will be accompanied by a round table discussion on the present and future of the Union of European Theatres.
In addition to the theatrical programme, the Festival includes discussions/round-tables that will take place live via the Zoom platform, allowing artists and the public to discuss the different sections and tributes. Thus, the first online session will feature representatives of the companies/collectives in discussion with Greek theatre professionals whose own work is also arranged around a contemporary collective approach. This is followed by a series of discussions / interviews in which the three female directors included in the related tribute talk to three female directors from Greece, exchanging views on the female gaze in theatre.
Rimini Protokoll's
Remote Thessaloniki is unique in being the only performance to physically take place in the city. The award-winning Berlin theatre company visits Thessaloniki to get the 3rd International Forest Festival underway. Remote Thessaloniki holds various surprises in store for those who elect to take part in a stroll/dérive from the Municipal Cemetery of Evangelistria to the White Tower, along with a different experience of the city. Given the singular nature of the performance, places must be booked in advance:
https://bit.ly/38HmKyD
In parallel, in a bid to redefine the shared experience of theatre-going, the 3rd International Forest Festival brings together a community of people who will have the opportunity, having connected with one another and watched a series of productions from the international theatre scene, to communicate both among themselves and with artists, to discuss, ask questions, raise objections, share reflections and exchange views on the current state of theatre worldwide. This sharing paves the way and provides opportunities for communication during the pandemic, keeping the concepts of participation and exchange in the act of theatre alive in an alternative way.
An online international mask workshop will be staged in parallel with the Festival, entitled “Face-Mask-Personality”. The workshop will be led by the director Simos Kakalas and the set/costume designer Martha Foka. In the novel conditions imposed by the pandemic, the mask has acquired new meanings and connotations, both as a means of theatrical expression and a tool for everyday life. The international artists taking part in the workshop will work on both making and using masks, searching for new tools and approaches. The workshop, which will be led by two Greek artists who have mastered mask making and use, is an additional attraction for friends of the theatre and of the theatrical mask in particular.
The team organizing and implementing the International Forest Festival at the NTNG consists of:
Amalia Kondoyanni (Head of the Artistic Production & Literary Department )
Maria Lazaridou (International Relations Office, Artistic Production)
Stella Papadimitriou (Literary Office)
Matina Pagoulatou (Theatrologist collaborator, Literary Office)
Sotiris Roumeliotis (Theatrologist collaborator, Literary Office)
Marily Ventouri (Artistic Production Office)
We thank the students from the School of Drama, Faculty of Fine Arts of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, who completed the practical internship of their course at the NTNG: Anna Maria Gatou, Dafni Dimou, Christina Eleftheriadou, Marina Zerdali, Rodopi Roukoudi, Athanasios Tzintzios, Asteropi Charitidou and Panagiotis Chrysidis.
Detailed Programme of the 3rd International Forest Festival
Thursday 9 September
Avant-Premiere
Tribute: Contemporary Theatre Collectives
Start: 18.00
Evangelistria Cemeteries
REMOTE THESSALONIKI by Stefan Kaegi and Jörg Karrenbauer
Walking performance
Text, concept, direction: Stefan Kaegi
Company: Rimini Protokoll
GERMANY
Friday 10 September
International Theatre Stage: Contemporary quests
Start time: 08.00 (online until 12/9, 08.00)
BOXE BOXE BRAZIL—Première
Directed & choreographed by Mourad Merzouki
FRANCE—BRAZIL
Tribute: Contemporary Theatre Collectives
Starts at 08.00 (online until 12/9, 08.00)
I HATE THEATRE I LOVE PORNOGRAPHY—Première
Directed by Omar Abi Azar
Zoukak Theatre Company
LEBANON
IN MY HEART'S EYE: THE LOVE PROJECT—Première
Directed by Maya Zbib
Zoukak Theatre Company
LEBANON
Starts at 18.00
Evangelistria Cemeteries
REMOTE THESSALONIKI by Stefan Kaegi and Jörg Karrenbauer
Walking performance. Also available in English.
Text, concept, direction: Stefan Kaegi
Rimini Protokoll
GERMANY
Saturday 11 September
International Theatre Stage: Contemporary quests
(online until 12/9, 08.00)
BOXE BOXE BRASIL
Directed & choreographed by Mourad Merzouki
FRANCE
Tribute: Contemporary Theatre Collectives
(online until 12/9, 08.00)
I HATE THEATRE I LOVE PORNOGRAPHY
Directed by Omar Abi Azar
Zoukak Theatre Company
LEBANON
IN MY HEART'S EYE: THE LOVE PROJECT
Directed by Maya Zbib
Zoukak Theatre Company
LEBANON
Starts at 18.00
Evangelistria Cemeteries
REMOTE THESSALONIKI by Stefan Kaegi and Jörg Karrenbauer
Walking performance
Text, concept, direction: Stefan Kaegi
Rimini Protokoll
GERMANY
Sunday 12 September
International Theatre Stage: Contemporary quests
Starts at 08.00 (online until 14/9, 08.00)
HUNGARIAN ACACIA—Première
Conceived and directed by Kristóf Kelemen, Bence György Pálinkás
HUNGARY
LOT—THE GRASS IS FATTER IN SODOM by János Térey—Première
Directed by Balázs Kovalik
Örkény Theatre
HUNGARY
Tribute: Contemporary Theatre Collectives
Starts at 08.00 (online until 14/9, 08.00)
RENACIMIENTO—Première
Company: La Tristura
SPAIN
Starts at 18.00
Evangelistria Cemeteries
REMOTE THESSALONIKI by Stefan Kaegi and Jörg Karrenbauer
Walking performance
Text, concept, direction: Stefan Kaegi
Company: Rimini Protokoll
GERMANY
Monday 13 September
International Theatre Stage: Contemporary quests
(online until 14/9, 08.00)
HUNGARIAN ACACIA
Conceived and directed by Kristóf Kelemen, Bence György Pálinkás
HUNGARY
LOT—THE GRASS IS FATTER IN SODOM by János Térey
Directed by Balázs Kovalik
Örkény Theatre
HUNGARY
Tribute: Contemporary Theatre Collectives
(online until 14/9, 08.00)
RENACIMIENTO
Company: La Tristura
SPAIN
19th Festival of the Union of Theatres of Europe
Starts at 08.00 (online until 15/9, 08.00)
THE BALCONY by Jean Genet—Première
Directed by Nuno Cardoso
Teatro Nacional São João
PORTUGAL
HOTEL GOOD LUCK by Alejandro Ricaño—Première
Directed by Michal Dočekal
Prague city Theatres
CZECH REPUBLIC
Live Discussions
Starts at 19.30
“Contemporary theatre collectives"
The discussion will take place on the zoom platform, with simultaneous translation provided into Greek and English.
Speakers: Daniel Wetzel (Rimini Protocol), Celco Giménez (La Tristura), Zoukak Theatre Company, Gigi Argyropoulou (director/performing arts theorist), Haris Pechlivanidis (director/actor/artistic director of the Ioannina Municipal Regional Theatre), Prodromos Tsinikoris (director/playwright/actor).
Coordinated by Savvas Patsalidis (professor of Theatre Studies at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, theatre critic)
Tuesday 14 June
International Theatre Stage: Contemporary quests
Starts at 08.00 (online until 16/9, 08.00)
BECKETT'S ROOM—Première
Text: Dead Center and Mark O'Halloran
Directed by Bush Moukarzel and Ben Kidd
IRELAND/UK
Tribute: The female Gaze on Theatre
Starts at 08.00 (online until 16/9, 08.00)
FUTURELAND—Première
Directed by Lola Arias
Maxim Gorki Theatre
GERMANY/ARGENTINA
19th Festival of the Union of Theatres of Europe
(online until 15/9, 08.00)
THE BALCONY by Jean Genet
Directed by Nuno Cardoso
Teatro Nacional São João
PORTUGAL
HOTEL GOOD LUCK by Alejandro Ricaño
Directed by Michal Dočekal
Prague city Theatres
CZECH REPUBLIC
Tribute: Contemporary Theatre Collectives
Starts at 18.00
Evangelistria Cemeteries
REMOTE THESSALONIKI by Stefan Kaegi and Jörg Karrenbauer
Walking performance
Text, concept, direction: Stefan Kaegi
Company: Rimini Protokoll
GERMANY
Wednesday 15 September
International Theatre Stage: Contemporary quests
(online until 16/9, 08.00)
BECKETT'S ROOM
Text: Dead Centre and Mark O'Halloran
Directed by Bush Moukarzel and Ben Kidd
IRELAND/UK
Tribute: The female Gaze on Theatre
(online until 16/9, 08.00)
FUTURELAND
Directed by Lola Arias
Maxim Gorki Theatre
GERMANY/ARGENTINA
19th Festival of the Union of Theatres of Europe
Start time: 08.00 (online until 17/9, 08.00)
FIASCO by Stanislaw Herman Lem—Première
Directed by Magda Szpecht
Adaptation & dramaturgy: Agnieszka Jakimiak
Stary National Theatre, Krakow
POLAND
THE MAGIC FLUTE by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart—Première
Directed by Gábor Tompa
Cluj Hungarian Opera
ROMANIA
Tribute: Contemporary Theatre Collectives
Starts at 18.00
Evangelistria Cemeteries
REMOTE THESSALONIKI by Stefan Kaegi and Jörg Karrenbauer
Walking performance
Text, concept, direction: Stefan Kaegi
Company: Rimini Protokoll
GERMANY
Thursday 16 September
International Theatre Stage: Contemporary quests
Start time: 08.00 (online until 18/9, 08.00)
DOREEN—Première
Written & directed by David Geselson
Based on Letter to D. by André Gorz
FRANCE
Tribute: The female Gaze on Theatre
Start time: 08.00 (online until 18/9, 08.00)
THREE SISTERS by Anton Chekhov- Première
Directed by Susanne Kennedy
Münchner Kammerspiele
GERMANY
19th Festival of the Union of Theatres of Europe
(online until 17/9, 08.00)
FIASCO by Stanislaw Herman Lem
Directed by Magda Szpecht
Adaptation & dramaturgy: Agnieszka Jakimiak
Stary National Theatre, Krakow
POLAND
THE MAGIC FLUTE by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Directed by Gábor Tompa
Cluj Hungarian Opera
ROMANIA
Tribute: Contemporary Theatre Collectives
Starts at 18.00
Evangelistria Cemeteries
REMOTE THESSALONIKI by Stefan Kaegi and Jörg Karrenbauer
Walking performance
Text, concept, direction: Stefan Kaegi
Company: Rimini Protokoll
GERMANY
Friday 17 September
International Theatre Stage: Contemporary quests
(online until 18/9, 08.00)
DOREEN
Written & directed by David Geselson
Based on Letter to D. by André Gorz
FRANCE
Tribute: The female Gaze on Theatre
(online until 18/9, 08.00)
THREE SISTERS by Anton Chekhov
Directed by Susanne Kennedy
Münchner Kammerspiele
GERMANY
19th Festival of the Union of Theatres of Europe
Starts at 08.00 (online until 19/9, 08.00)
THE METAMORPHOSIS by Franz Kafka—Première
Adapted & directed by Giorgio Barberio Corsetti
Teatro di Roma
ITALY
THE JOURNEY. A trip by Jörg Schröder—Première
Directed by Kathrin Herm
Dramaturgy by Florian Hirch
Luxembourg National Theatre
LUXEMBOURG
Live Discussions
Starts at 18.30
Susanne Kennedy discusses with Danae Theodoridou
An online encounter. The discussion will take place on the zoom platform with simultaneous translation provided into Greek and English.
Susanne Kennedy (director)
Danae Theodoridou (performance maker, researcher of contemporary performing arts, teaching staff at School of Drama, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki)
Coordinated by Amalia Kondoyanni (Phd Theatre Studies, Head of the Artistic Production and Literary Department NTNG)
Starts at
20.00
Union of European Theatres
An online roundtable about the present and the future of UTE, one of the most important European theatre networks. The discussion will take place on the zoom platform with simultaneous translation provided into Greek and English.
Chaired by Gábor Tompa, Director, President of the Union of European Theatres
Tribute: Contemporary Theatre Collectives
Starts at 18.00
Evangelistria Cemeteries
REMOTE THESSALONIKI by Stefan Kaegi and Jörg Karrenbauer
Walking performance
Text, concept, direction: Stefan Kaegi
Company: Rimini Protokoll
GERMANY
Saturday 18 September
International Theatre Stage: Contemporary quests
Start time: 08.00 (online until 20/9, 08.00)
CRASH PARK, THE LIFE OF AN ISLAND—Première
Concept, direction and sets by Philippe Quesne
FRANCE
Tribute: The female Gaze on Theatre
Start time: 08.00 (online until 20/9, 08.00)
DEATH POSITIVE—STATES OF EMERGENCY—Première
Directed by Yael Ronen
Maxim Gorki Theatre
ISRAEL/GERMANY
19th Festival of the Union of Theatres of Europe
(online until 19/9, 08.00)
THE METAMORPHOSIS by Franz Kafka
Adapted & directed by Giorgio Barberio Corsetti
Teatro di Roma
ITALY
THE JOURNEY A trip by Jörg Schröder—Première
Directed by Kathrin Herm
Dramaturgy by Florian Hirch
Luxembourg National Theatre
LUXEMBOURG
Tribute: Contemporary Theatre Collectives
Starts at 18.00
Evangelistria Cemeteries
REMOTE THESSALONIKI by Stefan Kaegi and Jörg Karrenbauer
Walking performance Also available in English.
Text, concept, direction: Stefan Kaegi
Company: Rimini Protokoll
GERMANY
Sunday 19 September
International Theatre Stage: Contemporary quests
(online until 20/9, 08.00)
CRASH PARK, THE LIFE OF AN ISLAND
Concept, direction and sets by Philippe Quesne
FRANCE
Tribute: The female Gaze on Theatre
(online until 20/9, 08.00)
DEATH POSITIVE—STATES OF EMERGENCY
Directed by Yael Ronen
Maxim Gorki Theatre
ISRAEL/GERMANY
19th Festival of the Union of Theatres of Europe
Start time: 08.00 (online until 21/9, 08.00)
LADIES FOOTBALL CLUB by Stefano Massini—Première
Directed by Giorgio Sangati
Piccolo Teatro di Milano
ITALY
THE YELLOW WIND by David Grossman—Première
Adapted & directed by Ilan Ronen
Jaffa Theatre
ISRAEL
Tribute: Contemporary Theatre Collectives
Starts at 18.00
Evangelistria Cemeteries
REMOTE THESSALONIKI by Stefan Kaegi and Jörg Karrenbauer
Walking performance
Text, concept, direction: Stefan Kaegi
Company: Rimini Protokoll
GERMANY
Monday 20 September
19th Festival of the Union of Theatres of Europe
(online until 21/9, 08.00)
LADIES FOOTBALL CLUB by Stefano Massini
Directed by Giorgio Sangati
Piccolo Teatro di Milano
ITALY
THE YELLOW WIND by David Grossman
Adapted & directed by Ilan Ronen
Jaffa Theatre
ISRAEL
Live Discussions
Starts at 19.00
Yael Ronen in conversation with Io Voulgaraki.
An online encounter. The discussion will take place on the zoom platform, with simultaneous translation provided into Greek and English.
Yael Ronen (director)
Io Voulgaraki (director, acting teacher)
Coordinated by Amalia Kondoyanni (Phd Theatre Studies, Head of the Artistic Production and Literary Department NTNG)
Starts at 20.00
Lola Arias in conversation with Eleni Efthymiou
An online encounter. The discussion will take place on the zoom platform, with simultaneous translation provided into Greek and English.
Lola Arias (actor, writer, theatre and film director)
Eleni Efthymiou (musician, director, actor)
Coordinated by Amalia Kondoyanni (Phd Theatre Studies, Head of the Artistic Production and Literary Department NTNG)