Join us for the launch of Matei Vişniec‘s ‘How to Explain the History of Communism to Mental Patients and Other Plays’, the first anthology in English of the Romanian theatre’s most prolific and revered contemporary playwright.
‘How to Explain the History of Communism to Mental Patients and Other Plays’, a collection of Vișniec’s best work of the last decades, is published by Seagull Books in the prestigious ‘In Performance’ series, which showcases key voices in international theatre.
The launching event will feature a conversation on playwriting, cultural memory and European theatre on the English stage. Along with the famous playwright, the panel, chaired by Faynia Williams, artistic director of Brighton Theatre, include theatre critic Ian Herbert and translator and academic Jozefina Komporaly, the anthology’s editor.
BAFTA-winning actress Anamaria Marinca will read extracts from Vişniec’s play ‘Decomposed Theatre’ (translation by Nick Awde and Jozefina Komporaly), and Rouge 28 Theatre company will present an abridged version of their acclaimed production of ‘The Story of the Panda Bears’ (Edinburgh Fringe Festival 2005, Voilà Festival 2014) – directed by Paul Piris and starring George Xander and Géraldine Cottalorda (translation by Claire Doucet and Ian Whitfield).
