The first issue of the magazine Amfiteater for 2022 brings an extensive thematic block Contemporary drama after l. 2000. The thematic part is rounded off by two discussions, each of which complements this topic in its own way. Matic Kocijančič analyzes the performances of Sophocles' Antigone on Slovenian professional stages, while Luka Benedičič reopens the topic of the ethical and political power of theater by trying to connect Brecht's concept of Gestus with ritual and taboo.
The issue concludes with reviews of current monographs in the field. This time we present Theater of Rebellion Aldo Milohnić, collection Adapting Greek Tragedy: Contemporary Contexts for Ancient Texts, edited by Vayos Liapis and Avra Sidiropoulou, and Equinox by Marjan Kozina Borut Smrekar.
In the drama of the twenty-first century, radical changes are taking place in Slovenia, as well as elsewhere in Europe and the Western world. The relationship between the dramatic text and the stage is constantly strained and oscillates between the text and the theatrical event. There are several approaches or views on the dramatic text, which intertwine with each other, exchange and produce new challenges for both dramatic writing and its staging.
In the thematic block, domestic and foreign researchers address four fundamental topics:
- How to preserve a theatrical event for which the text is only a starting point and which is essentially determined by the respective autopoietic feedback loop? So how to approach these performance texts in the first place?
- To what extent is post-dramatic theatre really a break, or can its break with representation be sought in the tradition of metadrama?
- How does post-dramatic theatre radically break with some fundamental elements of drama theory (e.g., dramatic character)?
- What are the substantive and formal characteristics of the drama written by the youngest generation of so-called millennials?
The first topic is opened by Aleksandra Jovičević, who explores contemporary performance texts. The latter must take into account both the changes in the textual template in the performance and the active role of the audience who co-create this hypertext. Zuzana Timčíková, Zala Dobovšek and Hana Strejčková complement this reflection with studies of individual performances or performance practices.
The second topic is opened by Lada Čale Feldman, who discusses the contradiction between representation and presence in postdramatic theatre and wonders whether the departure from representation could be sought in metadramatic texts in the past. This set also includes discussions by Krištof Jacko Kozak and Lara Jerkovič.
The third theme is outlined by Jure Gantar with a reflection on the dramatic character, which in post-dramatic theatre disintegrates or becomes increasingly fragmented, but it seems that this is not entirely the case in post-dramatic comedy. Various themes in contemporary drama writing are also analyzed by Pavel Ocepek and Hanna Veselovska.
The fourth topic includes a discussion by Lucija Ljubić and Martina Petranović on poetic tendencies in contemporary Croatian drama. The youngest generation is also portrayed by Varja Hrvatin, Maša Radi Buh, Jakob Ribič, and Benjamin Zajc.
This issue thus raises numerous questions and paints a complex picture of dramatic writing over the last twenty years.
Contemporary Drama after the Year 2000
Discussions / Articles
Contemporary Drama after the Year 2000
Aleksandra Jovićević
From stage to paper: new forms of performance text
From Stage to Page: New Forms of the Performance Text
Lada Čale Feldman
Jure Gantar
Character Death in Post-Dramatic Comedy
The Death of Character in Postdramatic Comedy
Lucija Ljubić, Martina Petranović
Poetic Tendencies of Contemporary Croatian Dramatic Writing
Poetic Tendencies in Contemporary Croatian Playwriting
Kristof Jacek Kozak
Post-postdramatic reincarnations of classical tragedies: Jelinek, Hertmans, Möderndorfer
Post-postdramatic Reincarnations of Classic Tragedies: Jelinek, Hertmans, Möderndorfer
Lara Jerkovic
Dramatic form and the ethical dimension of the text hosted by Simona Semenič
Dramatic Form and the Ethnic Dimension of the Text the feast by Simona Semenič
Pavel Ocepek
Sexually Liberated Woman: Sexuality and Sexual Cultures in Two Plays by Simona Semenič
The Sexually Liberated Woman: Sexuality and Sexual Cultures in T Simone Semenič
Zuzana Timičková
Authenticity in works of autobiographical theatre: approaches of the millennial generation
Authenticity in Authorial Works of Devised Theatre: Approaches of the Millennials
Zala Dobovšek
The Bailiff Jernej (2018): Documentary Representation of Poverty and Social Shame
Hana Strejčková
Hanna Veselovska
Twenty-first century drama and the new reality on social media
The 21st Century Drama and the New Reality of Social Networks
Varja Hrvatin, Maša Radi Buh, Jakob Ribič
Benjamin Zajc
The substance of millennial dramatic writing in our space
The Substance of Millennial Playwriting in Slovenia, Croatia and Serbia
Discussions / Articles
Matic Kocijančič
Sophocles' Antigone on Slovenian professional stages
Sophocles's Antigone on Slovenian Professional Stages
Luka Benedicic
Gesture and taboo: a study of Bertolt Brecht
Gestus and Taboo: A Study of Bertolt Brecht
Essays
Ivanka Apostolova Baskar
Lyudmil Dimitrov
Reviews
Leo Kreft
Aldo Milohnić
Adaptation as a reactualization of ancient drama
Lawrence Rogelj
Kozin's Equinox at the intersection of facts, context and aesthetics
Instructions for authors / Submission Guidelines
Invitation to discussions / Call for Papers
Editor-in-chief: Assoc. Prof. Dr. Gašper Troha (University of Ljubljana)
Editorial Board: Dr. Zala Dobovšek (University of Ljubljana), Mag. Primož Jesenko (Slovenian Theatre Institute), Dr. Matic Kocijančič (Slovenian Theatre Institute), Prof. Dr. Bojana Kunst (Justus-Liebig-Universität Gießen, DE), Assoc. Prof. Dr. Blaž Lukan (University of Ljubljana), Assoc. Prof. Dr. Aldo Milohnić (University of Ljubljana), Dr. Maja Murnik (Institute for New Media), Assoc. Prof. Dr. Barbara Orel (University of Ljubljana), Assoc. Prof. Dr. Mateja Pezdirc Bartol (University of Ljubljana), Dr. Maja Šorli (University of Ljubljana), Assoc. Prof. Dr. Tomaž Toporišič (University of Ljubljana)
International Editorial Board: Mark Amerika, MFA (University of Colorado, US), Marin Blažević, PhD, Assoc. Prof. (Sveučilište u Zagrebu, HR), Ramsay Burt, PhD (De Montfort University, GB), Joshua Edelman, PhD (Manchester Metropolitan University, GB), Jure Gantar, PhD (Dalhousie University, CA), Anna Maria Monteverdi, PhD (Università degli Studi di Milano, IT), Janelle Reinelt, PhD (The University of Warwick, GB), Anneli Saro, PhD (Tartu Űlikool, EE), Miško Šuvaković, PhD, Prof. (Univerzitet Singidunum, RS), Stephen Elliot Wilmer, Prof. (Trinity College Dublin, IE)
Co-Publisher: Slovenian Theatre Institute (Mojca Kreft, Director) and University of Ljubljana, Academy of Theatre, Radio, Film and Television (Tomaž Gubenšek, Dean)
The journal Amfiteater was founded by the University of Ljubljana AGRFT. In 2015, the journal began publishing in co-publishing with SLOGI. It remains a university scientific journal, with two issues per year.