PAP Polish Press Agency
PAP News Wire
August 2, 2004 Monday

International Shakespeare Festival underway in Gdansk

Gdansk

Shakespeare’s “Richard III,” a production
by Janusz Wisniewski in Teatr Nowy from Poznan inaugurated the
8th International Shakespeare Festival held in Gdansk from July
31 to August 8. The production was awarded the Golden Yorick
for the previous season.

The festival, organised by the Theatrum Gedanense
Foundation is recognised as one of the biggest event of this kind in
Europe.This year’s programme envisages productions by 12 theatres
from eight countries, Armenia, Estonia, Lithuania, Germany, Russia,
Romania and the USA, and Poland.

Three projects are realised during the festival thanks to
support of the European Commission: the European Shakespeare,
Shakespeare on the Baltic, and the Russian Shakespeare.

Theatre critic Andrzej Zurowski, the Theatrum Gedanense
artistic adviser and author of several books on Shakespeare
recommends especially the production of “Titus Andronicus” by Theater
an der Ruhr of Germany, directed by Roberto Ciulli of Milan,
and “Romeo and Juliet” by Russian theatre Luna with an all-men
cast.

The festival is accompanied by workshops, an international
conference on Shakespeare, panel discussions and exhibitions.