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Theatre Documentation, Information and Digitalisation Department

The Theatre Documentation, Information and Digitalisation Department collects and systematically edits documentary and historical materials concerning the Slovak professional theatre from its establishing in 1920 (by establishing the Slovak National Theatre in Bratislava) until present days. It maps artistic activity of Slovak theatre professionals of all genre forms – drama, musical, puppet and dance theatres, theatre of movement and mime. It focuses also on theatres of national minorities acting in Slovakia from 1945 – Hungarian, Ruthenian and Roma. Extensive classified collections provide essential or specialized information and serve to various purposes - from scientific to promotional. The integral part of documentation or the archives, is a video and film collection as well as a collection of possessions of distinguished theatre people. The Theatre Institute goes beyond the framework of the focusing on the Slovak professional theatre by monitoring the most important activities in the field of the Slovak amateur theatre or by information and documentary materials – posters about the activities of German and Hungarian theatres from the 18th and 19th century.

Publishing Department

The Publishing Department focuses mainly on research of contemporary Slovak theatre and publishing of theatrical literature. It publishes Slovak theatre plays, translations of foreign plays, Slovak and translated literature concerning theatre history, theory and critique, and also portraits and memoirs of important personalities. The publications of the department are issued in six editions: Slovak Theatre, Slovak Drama, World’s Theatre, World’s Drama, Nová drama / New Drama and Personalities. Another activity of the department is a distribution of the Theatre Institute publications as well as the operation of the information centre and PROSPERO bookshop.

Projects Department

It is the newest department of the Theatre Institute. Its scope is to coordinate particular leading projects which showed in the past as successful, and their activity therefore requires a fully prepared and involved dramaturgical and execution team. The department roofs a complete programme of the Nová drama / New Drama project (festival, book edition, promotions of the event in the Studio 12 and it simultaneously runs a new subprogramme of the project, the seminar of creative writing - New Writing) and the activities of the multimedia space of the Studio 12 which has profiled as the centre of new drama and new media. The department co-ordinates the projects -The History of Slovak Theatre and The History of Slovak Drama, and plans to publish editions of the same name. Another very interesting project of the department is a co-operation with the European Workshop of Translation / Atelier Européen de la Traduction established in France – the National Theatre Orléans. The project is about co-operations between Italian, Greek, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Irish, Romanian and Slovak theatres and cultural theatre institutions. The workshop’s aim is to create a broad European-level translation forum, which co-operates with universities, professional journals, theatres and publishing houses. In 2005 the project obtained a grant from the Culture 2000 programme. From its establishing in 1997 the project has initiated and supported more than 100 translations of contemporary drama from/to French, Greek, Italian, Spanish and other languages. In 2005 the Theatre Institute became a member of the network and a partner of the project.

Public Relations Department

The Public Relations Department provides a complete agenda of public relations of the Theatre Institute as well as a consulting activity. On request it gives information about Slovak theatre and theatre abroad, works on analysis materials from the field of cultural policy. It creates the basis of activity of some Slovak centres of non-governmental theatre organizations (OISTAT, ASSITEJ, SIBMAS, ITI, AICT), it co-operates with international cultural institutes which work in Slovakia, and with Slovak institutes abroad, with whom it usually exchanges information and documentary materials concerning theatrical happenings. It communicates with the media, state and independent theatres. It provides a co-operation with organizers of theatre events, festivals, conferences, with theatre associations or organizations working in theatrical sphere. It collaborates in designing of the projects organized or co-organized by the Theatre Institute such as exhibitions and other presentations of Slovak theatre.

Cultural Contact Point Slovakia

From January 2005 the Theatre Institute has carried out the activities of the Cultural Contact Point Slovakia agenda. The main activities are monitoring and mediating information about cultural and social processes in the EU countries, promoting the Culture 2000 Programme, co-operating with corresponding institutions abroad, consulting, helping to coordinate designs in preparing of projects, organizing of educational programmes, workshops, seminars and lectures. The Cultural Contact Point Slovakia Slovakia is in daily contact with other offices in Europe, they exchange experience and opinions concerning consulting and providing partnerships for projects. It has also kept the contact with many international organizations (EFAH, IETM, ECF etc…) which provides a full view on European cultural environment and at the same time it presents information about Slovakia internationally.

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