FUGA Festival

FUGA is the first and only international festival in Slovenia that focuses on theatrical performances and musical events from artistic academies and schools across Europe. It is primarily dedicated to students and young creators working in the fields of theatre, music, and audio-visual arts. The festival provides them with a platform to showcase their work and connect with peers from other artistic academies.

5TH FUGA FESTIVAL

The FUGA Festival 2024 will be held from the 10th to the 15th of July 2024 at the Koper Theatre and other venues.

• 10. 7. 2024 - Svetlana Aleksijevič: CHERNOBYL PRAYER
Academy of Arts Novi Sad (RS)
• 11. 7. 2024 - Mariann Fabók: ERZSÓKA
University of Theatre and Film Arts Budapest (HU)
• 12. 7. 2024 - Katarina Nikolić: THE WINDOW
Faculty of dramatic arts Belgrade (RS)
• 13. 7. 2024 - Avtorski projekt: 'QR CODE'
Academy of Theatre, Radio, Film and Television, Ljubljana (SI)
• 14. 7. 2024 - Kolektiv: NOT FOUND
Accademia Dimitri (CH)
• 15. 7. 2024 - Piotr Mateusz Wach: mushrooming/NUCLEAR WINTER
AST National Academy of Theatre Arts in Krakow (PL)

Festival Jury

Nicolás Lange (1994) is a Chilean writer, performer and playwright. He currently lives in Florence, Italy. His texts have been translated into English, German, Italian, Portuguese and French, and his plays have been presented in more than 15 countries. Author of the book “Caminamos Porque Amamos Algo” (Winner of the Premios Literarios, Chile, 2021)’. Winner of the Muestra Nacional de dramaturgia 2022, and Premios Literarios, 2023). Winner of the Gabriela Mistral Awards 85th Edition. He has been resident artist at GORKI Theater, KVS Brussels, National Theater of Lithuania, Citè des Arts-Paris and Watermill Center. This year he will publish his last text “Hunt The Dog, Hunt The Boy, Hunt The Other Boy Too” at the Centro Dramático Nacional, Madrid.

FUGA Festival 2 — Foto: Željko Stojanović

Ivana Vujić, former vice-rector of the University of Arts is a Full Professor at the Faculty of Dramatic Arts in Belgrade (Theatre Directing), guest lecturer at the Academy of Art in Utrecht, Belgrade Open School and Stockholm Theatre Academy. She was artistic director of Bitef Festival in Belgrade, Festival FIAT in Montenegro, curator of theatre program for Belgrade Summer Festival (BELEF) and founder of Beton Hala Teatar Belgrade. In her performance research and theatre work she deals with the relationship between director, actor and spectator, confronting theatrical acts - past, avant-garde, present, postmodern and intercultural. Her productions participated at national and international theatre festivals (Edinburgh, Mittelfest, La Mama Festival, etc). She was co-editor and translator of Richard Schecner's and Eugenio Barba’s and Nicola Savarese’s books in Serbian.

Anja Novak (born 1991) is a theatre and film actress, performer, poet, and singer. In 2014, she graduated in acting from the Academy of Theatre, Radio, Film, and Television (AGRFT) in Ljubljana. In 2015, with her original project "I Would Like to Have Children, a Garden, and Fifteen Rabbits," she completed her master's degree and received the academic Prešeren Fund Award. She is employed with the ensemble of the Slovenian Mladinsko Theatre and is also active on the independent scene, in film, and in literature. She primarily writes poetry, and in 2023, she won the Slavko Grum Award for her play "Body Text," which was later published by the magazine Sodobnost. In August 2020, her first poetry collection, titled "Ranerane," was published by Založba Sanje and was nominated for Best Debut at the Slovenian Book Fair. She has received numerous awards, including two Borštnik Awards, two Šeligo Awards at the TSD, and others. She loves rabbits and does not have a Facebook account.

Accompanying Programme

This year's accompanying program of audio-visual arts, which will take place in and around Bastion, has been created in collaboration with the Association for Culture and Education PiNA. The performers will be announced soon.

Slovenska različica

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About the Festival

The festival was launched in 2020, but it only found its original form and purpose in the last two editions (2022, 2023) due to limitations related to the COVID-19 pandemic in the initial two years. It takes place during the summer months, usually in July, in Koper and other coastal cities. The festival is organised and funded by the Student Organization of the University of Primorska, the Cultural-Educational Association PiNA, the Municipality of Koper, and the Koper Theatre, which provides the venue and technical support for the program.

Until now, the festival program has been co-created by theatrical productions from the following institutions: AGRFT Ljubljana (SLO), Academy of Dramatic Art Zagreb (HR), Faculty of Dramatic Arts Belgrade (SRB), Central Saint Martins London (UK), Art Academy of the University of Banja Luka (BIH), MAPS University of Utrecht (NL), and Dramatic Studio Umag (HR). Over four years, 15 performances, 4 discussions with the creators, 3 evenings of student films, a workshop by professor and theater director Ivana Vujić from Belgrade titled "B. Brecht: Practice and Work with Actors," a lecture by artists from the Space for Art NOT (SLO) in Monfort in Portorož, an improvisation titled "First Kiss" under the mentorship of professor Željko Mitrović, involving students from all visiting academies, two awards for the best performance as selected by the audience (2022, 2023), and 20 concerts at various outdoor locations in Koper have been realised.

The festival attracts approximately 2000 visitors each year, indicating that it is not only intended for a student audience. FUGA opens its doors to everyone interested in theatrical, musical, and audio-visual arts.