The 16th Black Box International Theatre and Dance Festival will take place from May 27 to June 11, 2022 in Plovdiv.

The festival includes 8 international and Bulgarian performances and events in the field of theatre and contemporary dance from six countries - Italy, Spain, Bulgaria, Greece, Austria and Hungary. 

The international selection kicks off on May 27 with the latest production of Ocram Dance Movement, an Italian contemporary dance company - Yes, I am. They will also present the dance miniature Substrate, representing an intersection between classical ballet and contemporary dance, created in partnership with the students of the school of dance teacher and choreographer Masha Ivanova in Plovdiv. Ocram Dance Movement was founded in 2013 by Marco Laudani. Ocram is a world of ideas that aims to tell about different realities and dimensions through dance. It is a choreographic exhibition, a different narrative mechanism characterized by infinite exploration. 

On May 31, the Spanish company No bautizados will present Lo Invisible. A vivid theatre and dance performance that explores the vital sensations in some defining moments of human life. The dancers interpret their own physical differences and life experiences to show the duality of existence, embracing its contradictions, successes, desires and fears. Katia Humenyuk and Rolando Salame founded No bautizados in 2018 to explore the different stage languages of creating dance performances, focusing on the themes of the day and creating an opportunity for discussions relevant to the present moment.

On June 4 PUC, a young interdisciplinary collective from Vienna that brings together artists from different fields to create performative, educational and public projects will present In Touch. The experimental performance reinterprets the materiality of physical contact using sound. Based on recognizable everyday noises of touch, In Touch explores collective sensory experiences and plays with audience expectations. Using their skin as a means of communication, PUC performers explore alternative worlds of the senses that unfold with music. 

Also on June 4, Zoi Efstathiou from Greece will perform the duet We Find Each Other in the Plenum. The performance focuses on movement and its repetition. In the first part the dancers move mostly in perfect unison. The small differences in directions symbolize the need for autonomy in each relationship. The dancers move on to the second movement, a new beginning, uncertain, similar to the period we are now experiencing with the pandemic. An uncertain future in which we are called together to move forward and take a step towards an unknown new beginning. Since 2016 Zoi Efstathiou has been collaborating with Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker as a repertory dancer in Belgium. Zoi is a graduate of the Professional Dance School "Niki Kontaxaki - Nikoletta Bakali" in Athens and in 2014 she started a Youth Dance Company in Greece, with dancers aged 18 to 25.

On June 11, the spectacular performance Freestyle by one of the most interesting artists of the Hungarian theatre and dance scene - Rita Góbi will be shown. Born in Novi Sad, Serbia and graduated from the Hungarian Dance Academy in Budapest. In 2006 Rita Góbi founded the company Góbi Dance. Since then she has created contemporary dance productions, interactive performances for children and has participated in various interdisciplinary projects. Rita Góbi's work can be described as bold, experimental and precisely choreographed. The combination of movement, music, visual effects and lights create the futuristic atmosphere of her performances.
The playing field of Freestyle is enlivened by the physical presence of two heroines, Ruri and Rita. This competition is not about speed or winning. In Freestyle, the participants wrestle with their own bodies, not each other.

The Bulgarian participation in the Black Box Festival is by the Dune Dance Company with Rituals of the Soul on June 4. Dune Dance Company is an independent contemporary dance company founded in 1986 in Burgas. The company presents original performances and develops for more than 20 years a school for contemporary dance in Burgas.

They will tell us the story of what the body is. The performance focuses on images of deep movement, in search of the relationship between consciousness and body. A practice of encounter and fusion. Body and Soul in One. 

Partners of the 16th festival edition are the Ministry of Culture, Municipality of Plovdiv, Italian Cultural Institute, Embassy of Austria, Hungarian Cultural Institute, KCM 2000 AD, and Plovdiv Drama Theatre.
Black Box International Theatre and Dance Festival 2022 is supported by the Municipality of Plovdiv as part of the Cultural Calendar 2022. 

See the festival programme here: https://bg.theblackboxfestival.com

For more information please visit: https://www.facebook.com/TheBlackBoxITDF