DráMÁzat III – Book Launch

The volume containing a selection of the texts that took part in the drama contest organized by Szigligeti Theatre and Tomcsa Sándor Theatre Odorheiu Secuiesc was launched on Day Zero of dráMA9 Festival, on 17 September 2017, in Odorheiu Secuiesc. Pál Nagy, director of Tomcsa Sándor Theatre said that similar to other years, the contest was held in three categories: Debut, drámaÍRÓ, draMAutor.

For the Debut contest, the theatres have received 50 applications from authors whose works have not yet been published or presented on stage. In this category, members of the jury were: Katalin Czvikker, director of Szigligeti Theatre, Pál Nagy, director of Tomcsa Sándor Theatre, theatre critic Kata Köllő from Cluj Napoca, Budapest dramaturgist Ildikó Lőkös, director Zalán Zakariás , and actor-director István Hunyadi. The winner was Goalpost and Own Goal by Péter Körmöczi-Kriván, whichm of course, is included in the volume, and was presented for the first time ever on stage during the contemporary drama festival, on 18 September, in the author's presence.

The category drámaÍRÓ, dedicated for the yet unpublished and unpresented works of playwrights whose other works have already appeared in print or put to the stage, saw 37 applications this year. The first prize was awarded to There Will Be No Morning, Fred! By Levente Moravecz. The text appears in the volume, and will pe presented on the stage of Tomcsa Sándor Theatre in this season. The jury was composed of translator and professor of the University of Arts Târgu Mureş, Mária Albert, critic Katalin-Ágnes Szűcs, Szigligeti Theatre's literary manager Márta Fazakas, theatre expert Zeno Fodor, Csongor Csurulya, former art director of Tomcsa Sándor Theatre, and literary manager Katalin Demeter.

Besides these mentioned, the volume also contains the play England by László Varga, Ghetto Love by Tamás Réczei, and also the only Romanian-language application received in the category draMAutor, Only in Case of Emergency by Daniel Oltean, featured in the book in Romanian as well as Hungarian.

Pál Nagy thanked the jury, compsed theatre experts from Romania and Hungary, for the voluntary work, the results of which will soon be sent to theatres ans libraries, to make the works available for everybody. The volumes will also be for sale in the theatres of Odorheiu Secuiesc and Oradea.

At the end of the book launch, members of the jury talked about the experiences of the past 6 years, the quality of the applications received, and the editing of the book. Despite all diffculties, they agreed that this initiative is worth continuing, because “without contemporary drama, there can be no theatre”. Katalin Czvikker seized the opportunity to announce that the fourth edition of the contest will soon be announced.