International project DoSEL draws attention to the drama of smaller European languages

Last week marked the official launch of the international project Drama of Smaller European Languages (DoSEL), which focuses on translating and developing plays written in smaller European languages. Since the Estonian Theatre Agency is among the project’s partner organizations, Estonian playwrights will also have the opportunity to bring their works to an international audience.

The goal of DoSEL is to increase the international recognition and accessibility of dramatic works originally written in smaller European languages and to encourage their more frequent staging. The project is a collaboration between eight European cultural organizations, including the National Agency for the Performing Arts from Malta, the Arriaga Antzokia Theatre and Sala Beckett from Spain, the Croatian National Theatre in Zagreb, the Estonian Theatre Agency, the National Theatre of Kosovo, the Ivan Vazov National Theatre from Bulgaria, and the Prešeren Theatre from Slovenia.

Within the DoSEL framework, plays will be translated through translation workshops and artistic residencies, and original works in smaller languages will be introduced through performances at showcase festivals in Slovenia and Malta. The project will also explore contemporary European playwriting and present selected plays and playwrights at international meetings and festivals. More than 200 playwrights, translators, theatre professionals, and cultural workers will be involved.

By the end of the project, the partners will publish a collection of 24 first translations of plays written in Slovenian, Maltese, Catalan, Basque, Croatian, Estonian, and Albanian into a major European language (German, French, or English) and one other, smaller European language. These plays will also become part of a collection of contemporary European drama, compiled and curated with the support of the European Theatre Convention network.

The project is funded by the EU’s Creative Europe program, with the lead organization being the Prešeren Theatre in Kranj, Slovenia.

Further information about the project will be available on the new website www.dosel.eu.

Photo from the DoSEL kick-off-meeting in Kranj, Slovenia. Photo by Masa Pirc.

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