Theater festival in Adana to kick off season

ADANA

Organized with the cooperation of the Sabancı Foundation, the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, and State Theaters, the 19th State Theaters Sabancı International Adana Theater Festival will kick off in the southern Turkish province of Adana on March 27, World Theater Day. The event will feature national and international theater shows through April 30. 

According to a statement from the festival committee, the festival will present 12 Turkish and nine foreign plays. 

The opening of the festival will be made by the Istanbul State Theater’s play “Giydirici” (The Dresser) at the Adana Hacı Ömer Sabancı Culture Center. 

The play, which draws attention from audiences every season, tells the story of a famous and old theater actor and his veteran dresser of a theater troupe, which did not abandon performing even under bombs during World War II. 

This year the festival will host “Romeo and Juliette” and “Anna and Admiral” from Russia, “The GagFather” from Spain, “Cherry Garden” from Georgia, “Old Clown Wanted” from Macedonia, “Antigone” from Serbia, and the children’s play “Log House” from Italy. 

From Turkey, the festival will present the State Theaters’ most successful plays, as well as private theaters including “Ermişler ya da Günahkarlar” (Mindgame) by the İzmir State Theaters, “Üç Kız Kardeş” (Three Sisters) by the Diyarbakır State Theater, “Gayrı Resmi Hürrem” (Unofficial Hürrem) by the Ankara State Theater, “Ivan Ivanoviç Var Mıydı, Yok Muydu?” (Did Ivan Ivanoviç Exist or Not?) by Theater Adam, “Ahududu” (Raspberry) by Theater Kare, “Parçacıklar” (Particles) by Pürtelaş, “Köpeklerin İsyan Günü” (The Rebellion Day of Dogs) by Theater Platform, and “Kim Var Orada–Muhsin Bey’in Son Hamleti” (Who’s There? – The Last Hamlet of Mr. Muhsin) by the Boğaziçi Performing Arts Gorup. 

Cia La Tal from Spain will also be at the festival, presenting its successful street theater play “Cuckoo Clock” in open air at Doğal Park. 


Support for young artists 

The festival continues this year to support young artists and give space to alternative theater troupes on its stages. 

Among the young theater troupes to attend the festival will be Germany’s Theater 28 with the play “Border,” Ya Da Theater with the play “Enayi” (Fool), Theater Hane with the play “Yalanın Ardındaki” (Behind the Lie) and Fabrika Oyuncuları with the play “4 Delikli Düğme” (Button with Four Holes). 

In addition, the festival will organize workshops for children on puppet making with wasted materials, musk making, creative mud works, physical theater and traditional Turkish theater Karagöz. 

The festival’s Sakıp Sabancı Lifetime Success Award, which has been presented since 2005 as a token of gratitude and respect for masters who have made great contributions to theater, will be presented at the event’s opening ceremony. 

Over the last 18 years, the festival has hosted 94 foreign theater troupes from 42 countries, as well as around 6,000 national and international artists, drawing around 1 million people.