Prešeren Theatre Kranj, in collaboration with Cankarjev dom and the DoSEL project partners, is proud to present a satellite event of the international DoSEL Showcase Programme 2025 in Slovenia.
The project Drama of Smaller European Languages – DoSEL is an initiative supported by the European Union’s Creative Europe programme, aimed at increasing the visibility and vitality of dramatic works created in smaller European languages.
By encouraging the translation, staging, and circulation of these dramatic works, the DoSEL project transmits the message that the richness of European theatre lies in the diversity of languages, perspectives, and stories from different European linguistic and cultural contexts, while also drawing attention to the vulnerability of smaller European dramatic traditions and their original cultural and artistic environments due to linguistic barriers in reaching broad international audiences.
The Satellite Programme in Ljubljana rounds off the artistic events of last spring’s international DoSEL Showcase at the 55th Week of Slovenian Drama in Kranj.
The events in Ljubljana take place on 2nd October 2025 at the Cultural and Congress Centre Cankarjev dom and feature an international conference, followed by the evening performance of MOTO – Membra Jesu Nostri at the Linhart Hall of Cankarjev dom, produced by the Arriaga Theatre from Bilbao.
The first discussion of the conference will tackle the position of smaller European languages in the contemporary European theatre sector. The discussion will be moderated by the Slovene researcher and theatre critic Mr Jakob Ribič.
The panellists include Mr Victor Muñoz, Head of Authors Relations at Sala Beckett in Barcelona, Ms Zala Dobovšek, PhD, dramaturg and selector at the Week of Slovenian Drama festival, Ms Laura Gardes, ETC Project & Manager, and Mr Darko Lukić, PhD, theatre scholar and cultural theorist based in Berlin.
The second discussion, which will be moderated by the Slovenian dramaturg and translator Ms Barbara Skubic, will explore the role of translation and translators in promoting drama in smaller European languages. The panellists include Ms Julija Potrč Šavli, a Slovenian drama translator, Mr Dino Pešut, author and dramaturg at the Croatian National Theatre Zagreb, Mr Ivan Dodovski, PhD, Macedonian contemporary drama scholar and writer, President of the Eurodram network, and Mr Gašper Troha, PhD, researcher and Director of the Slovene Theatre Institute.
In the evening of 2nd October, a major guest performance titled MOTO – Membra Jesu Nostri will be presented at the Linhart Hall of Cankarjev dom, produced by the Arriaga Theatre from Bilbao. The performance is based on the music by Dieterich Buxtehude (1637–1707): Membra Jesu Nostri, presented by the soloists, choir, and instrumental ensemble Conductus Ensemble, with musical director Andoni Sierra. The performance is directed by Lucía Astigarraga, with Eneko Sagardoy as the author of the text and main actor. As Nino Dentici wrote for El Correo, the performance is “a good way to publicize rarely performed baroque works and to dramatize the work, giving it entertaining modernity.”
On 3rd October, the director of the performance, Lucía Astigarraga, will give a Masterclass at the University of Ljubljana Academy of Theatre, Radio, Film and Television for Slovenian and Croatian students of theatre and dramaturgy.
As part of the satellite event, all DoSEL project partners and attending associated partners will gather to prepare the upcoming activities of the partnership. The next DoSEL International Showcase of performances based on drama works written in smaller European languages will take place in Valletta, Malta, in April 2026, hosted by the National Agency for the Performing Arts Malta. Next year, the DoSEL partnership will launch 24 first-time translations of selected contemporary drama works written in smaller European languages. Book publications will be available in Fall 2026.
In this way, the DoSEL project expands the reach of smaller languages, nurtures artistic exchange, and strengthens the fabric of European cultural life.
