2015 » Bulgaria » Section of Countries and Regions

Merry Go Round

The national presentation of Bulgaria at PQ'15 consists of a kinetic object – carousel titled “MERRY GO ROUND” – a project developed by SubHuman Theatre and a catalog presenting the work of this group of emerging scenographers, working together for the last four years.

MERRY-GO-ROUND is an installation and a theatre performance. At PQ'15 we will present an adapted version of the installation. The center of the exposition is a construction, a kind of merry-go-round, which the audience can enter and spin around.

In an associative way it makes you think about aspects such as departure, escape, desire and hope, for abandoned spaces. The space creates the situation.

Exhibiting artists / ateliers

• Венелин Шурелов (Venelin Shurelov)

* 1977, Burgas
Specialization: teacher, media artist, scenographer, visual artist
Education: PhD, National Academy of Arts, Sofia, Bulgaria
Collaboration with theatres: National Theatre, SFUMATO Theatre Laboratory
Teaching activities: Co-founder and lecturer in the “Digital Arts” MA program at the National Academy of Arts, Sofia
Additional information: His work relates to decoding the language of modern myths and encoding them in new creatures, to the intersection between man and technology, human and subhuman as a sub-product of the social, political, economic and cultural situation.
• Мария Диманова (Maria Dimanova)

* 1950, Stara Zagora
Specialization: teacher, set designer, costume designer, scenographer
Education: National Academy of Art, Sofia
Teaching activities: Assoc. Professor of Costume History, NATFA, Sofia
Continuing collaboration with directors: Leon Daniel, Krikor Azaryan, Slavi Shkarov, Nikolay Polyakov, Borislav Tchakrinov etc.
Additional information: She lectures in puppet design at the National Academy for Theatrical and Film Arts in Sofia.
• Силва Бъчварова (Silva Batchvarova)

* 1953, Plovdiv
Specialization: teacher, set designer, costume designer, painter , puppet designer, scenographer, Illustrator, CG & 3D modeling
Education: National Academy of Arts - Sofia, Department of Scenography
Collaboration with theatres: Various theatres in Bulgaria, Serbia, Croatia, Mexico
Teaching activities: Painting and puppet scenography at the National Academy of Arts, Sofia
Participation in other important exhibitions: Solo exhibitions of scenography: Tolosa/Spain, Alicante, Spain, Zagreb/Croatia; general exhibitions in Prague/Czech Republic, Bratislava/Slovakia, Tokyo/Japan; “The Artist and Theatre”, Sofia/Bulgaria
Continuing collaboration with directors: Slavi Malenov, Peter Pashov
Awards: Many awards from Bulgarian and international puppet festivals
Additional information: Her name is associated with productions, which have received international recognition. She lectured at the National Academy for Theatrical and Film Arts in Sofia.
• Васил Рокоманов (Vasil Rokomanov)

* 1954, Sliven
Specialization: teacher, set designer, costume designer, puppet designer, scenographer
Education: scenography, National Academy of Arts, Sofia
Collaboration with theatres: Various theatres in Bulgaria, Serbia, Croatia, Mexico
Teaching activities: Professor, history of the stage and scenography, technique and technology, puppet scenography, theatre anthropology, National Academy of Art, Sofia  
Participation in other important exhibitions: Solo exhibitions of scenography: Tolosa/Spain, Alicante, Spain, Zagreb/Croatia; general exhibitions in Prague/Czech Republic, Bratislava/Slovakia, Tokyo/Japan; “The Artist and Theatre”, Sofia/Bulgaria
Continuing collaboration with directors: Slavi Malenov, Peter Pashov
Awards: Many awards from Bulgarian and international puppet festivals
Additional information: He is a puppet theatre designer, teacher of theatre technology and history of scenography. His design credits include posters for drama and puppet shows, illustrations for books and magazines, arrangements of exhibitions.
• Юлиян Табаков (Youlian Tabakov)

Specialization: director, set designer, costume designer, sculptor, fashion designer, illustration
Education: MA in set and costume design, National Academy of Art, Sofia; MFA in sculpture, Ecole Nationale Superieure des Beaux-Arts; studied toy design at the School of Applied Arts
Collaboration with theatres: Teater Giljotin, Uppsala Stads Teater, Teater 199
Continuing collaboration with directors: Kia Berglund, Rimas Tuminas, Etien Glaser, Galin Stoev
Awards: 2nd prize in set design, Vratza theatre festival; 2nd prize in set design, Shumen theatre festival; 3rd place, Smirnoff Fashion Contest
Additional information: Set designer, costume maker, illustrator, filmmaker. Lives and works in Sofia.
• Rin Yamamura

* 1979, Kanagawa, Japan
Specialization: set designer, puppet designer, Illustrator
Additional information: Has been living and working in Sofia, Bulgaria since 2001. 2001-2006 studied to prof. Maia Petrova for „Puppet Scenography“ at the National Academy for Theatre and Film Arts.
• Хана Шварц (Hanna Todorova Schwarz)

* 1956
Specialization: set designer, costume designer, puppet designer, scenographer
Education: MA in scenography, National Academy of Arts, Sofia
Collaboration with theatres: Sofia Puppet Theatre, Art Centre ProRodopi, Plovdiv Puppet Theatre
Teaching activities: 1996-2005: lecturer in the scenography of puppet theatre and puppet design at the National Academy of Theatre and Film Arts (NATFA); Puppet Theatre Acting and Directing Department, Bourgas University; art courses at Balkan College, Sofia
Participation in other important exhibitions: National scenography exhibits 1989-2010; Youth Scenography Exhibitions in Sofia, Bratislava, Prague, 1976
Continuing collaboration with directors: Petar Todorov, Bonyo Lungov, Katya Petrova, Simon Schwartz, Leo Kapon
Awards: 2010: 1st Place and Special Award of the Dutch and Bulgarian jury for “Garbage for plums” (dir. P. Todorov) at the “Three are too many – two – not enough” International Puppet Theatre Festival; 2009: 1st place for “Eleven Songs of Love” (dir. N. Minteva) at the Monodrama Festival, Korce/Albania; 2008: 1st Place and Special Award of the Dutch and Bulgarian jury for “I, the Soul” (dir. P. Todorov) at the “Three are too many – two – not enough” International Puppet Theatre Festival; 2006: 1st place for puppets for “Maugli” (dir. B. Lungov) at International “Golden Dolphin” Puppet Festival, Varna; 2006: Grand Prix at international theatre festivals in Tirana/Albania, Pakistan, and Bucharest for “Chick with a Trick” (dir. P. Todorov); 2006: Special Award of the Dutch Jury for “Chick with a Trick” (dir. P. Todorov) at International Puppet Theatre Festival “Three are too many- two – not enough”
Additional information: Lecturer in the scenography of puppet theatre and puppet design.
• Майа Петрова (Maya Petrova)

* 1950, Sofija
Specialization: teacher, costume designer, puppet designer, specialization course at Cité Internationale des Arts, Paris, France; Institut International de la Marionnette,  Charleville-Mézières, France  
Education: MA from DAMU (Theatre Faculty of the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague), Department of Puppetry; studied scenography and puppet theater technology with Professor R. Lander and Assistant Professor V. Caburt
Teaching activities: Krastyo Sarafov National Academy for Theatre and Film Arts, academic title of Professor (1992-2011); head of Puppetry Scenography department, taught scenography and puppet theater technology (1976-1992); taught scenography and puppet theater technology to students studying “Acting Arts” and “Directorship for Puppet Theatre”; teacher and responsible for internships and a workshop; Europe: Bulgaria, France, Spain, Luxembourg, Belgium, Croatia; Asia: Afghanistan, Japan; Africa: Zimbabwe, Tunisia; Americas: Canada  
Participation in other important exhibitions: Participated in scenographic exhibitions in Bulgaria, the former Yugoslavia, Germany, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Spain, Russia; solo exhibitions in France and Belgium
Awards: Awards from international puppet theatre festivals in Hungary, Ukraine, Belgium, United Kingdom, USA, Japan, Serbia, Croatia; more than 30 awards at national and international festivals in Bulgaria, exhibitions of the Union of Bulgarian Artists; Annual awards of the Union of Artists in Bulgaria
Additional information: She is the founder and head of the Puppet Design Program. Petrova is a puppet theatre artist with design and teaching credits from theatres and universities all over the world. She served as a chair of the Bulgarian OISTAT Centre 1985-1995.
• Петър Митев (Petar Mitev)

* 1960, Plovdiv
Specialization: set designer, costume designer, lighting designer, scenographer
Education: MA Scenography at National Academy of Arts - Sofia, Bulgaria
Collaboration with theatres: Resident designer at the Plovdiv Drama Theatre; Binev Theatre for the Youth, Sofia; Sofia Drama Theatre
Continuing collaboration with directors: Vladimir Petkov,Georgi Mihalkov  
Additional information: Born in 1960 in Plovdiv. Stage and costume designer. Studied scenography at the National Academy of Fine Arts in Sofia. Currently works at the National Youth Theatre in Sofia.
• Весела Статкова (Vessela Statkova Kareva)

Specialization: teacher, media artist, scenographer
Education: MFA Scenography, National Academy of Arts, Sofia; Burg Giebichenstein HKD, Halle, Germany
Teaching activities: Assoc. Professor - CAD for Scenography; Multimedia & VR, AMDFA - Plovdiv
Additional information: She graduated from the National Academy of Arts, Department of Scenography. Her post graduate studies were at Burg Giebichenstein Hochschule für Kunst und Design in Halle, Germany. There she specialized in multimedia and virtual reality design. She works as a freelance designer in the areas of set and costume design for drama theatre, multimedia, installation art. She teaches a computer aided design course at the Academy of Music and Dance, Plovdiv. www.wessela.com
• Мира Каланова (Mira Kalanova)

* 1975
Specialization: teacher, costume designer, scenographer
Education: MA in scenography, PhD in cinematographic art
Collaboration with theatres: National Theatre Ivan Vazov, Varna Drama Theatre
Teaching activities: Costume design, the function of color in visual art, National Academy for Theatre and Film Arts, Sofia
Continuing collaboration with directors: Plamen Markov
Additional information: She graduated from the National Academy of Art, Department of Scenography. She works as a freelance set and costume designer for theatres as well as for film, video, entertainment music, and commercial productions.
• Чайка Петрушева (Chayka Petrusheva)

* 1951, Sofia
Specialization: teacher, set designer, costume designer, scenographer
Education: National Academy of Arts, Sofia
Collaboration with theatres: Ivan Vazov National Theatre; Salza I Smiah Theatre, Sofia, Adriana Budevska Theatre, Burgas; and more
Teaching activities: Associate Professor, NATFA, Sofia
Participation in other important exhibitions: All national exhibitions of scenography in the past 30 years
Continuing collaboration with directors: Krasimir Spasov, Nikolay Lambrev, Mihail Sabev, Nedyalko Yordanov, Jiri Menzel
Additional information: Stage and costume designer. Studied scenography at the National Academy of Fine Arts in Sofia. She currently teaches scenography at the National Academy for Theatrical and Film Arts in Sofia.
• Марина Райчинова (Marina Raytchinova)

* 1961, Plovdiv
Specialization: teacher, set designer, costume designer, lighting designer, scenographer, OISTAT
Education: MFA, National Academy of Arts, Sofia
Collaboration with theatres: Resident designer at the Bulgarian Army Theatre; Ivan Vazov National Theatre; Theatre 199; Binev Theatre for the Youth, Sofia; Clarence Brown Theatre, Knoxville USA
Teaching activities: Associate professor, Department Scenography, National Academy, Sofia; taught set and costume design at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville; has been guest lecturer at the University of Nebraska, University of Kansas, Furman University, USA; RITS, Hogesschool, Brussels; UT Design Seminar, Salzburg; North Karelia Polytechnic, Joensuu, Finland; Mimar Sinan University, Istanbul; University of the Arts, Belgrade; and others
Participation in other important exhibitions: WSD Gallery Exhibit Toronto 2005
Continuing collaboration with directors: Krikor Azaryan, Krasimir Spasov, Snejina Tankovska
Additional information: She graduated from the National Academy of Arts, Sofia. She is a scenic and costume designer with theatre credits in Bulgaria, Macedonia, Russia, Switzerland, France and the USA. She is a temporary resident designer at "Bulgarian Army" Theatre, Sofia and Associate professor of History of Costume and Scenography at the National Academy of Arts, Sofia. Chair of the OISTAT Education Commission since 2004. Was actively involved in organizing Scenofest 2003 and Scenofest at PQ’07. She exhibited at PQ in 1987, 1995, 1999.
• Мариета Голомехова (Marieta Golomehova)

* 17.10.1969, Stara Zagora
Specialization: set designer, costume designer, puppet designer, scenographer
Education: MA in Acting and Specialization of Puppet and Drama Stage Design
Collaboration with theatres: Baj Theatre, Warsaw/Poland; Sofia Puppet Theatre, Bulgaria; Theatre of Youth, Subotica/Serbia; Theatre of Youth, Kragujevac/Serbia; State Puppet Theatre, Plovdiv/Bulgaria; State Puppet Theatre, Varna/Bulgaria; Theatre of Youth, Banja Luka/Bosnia; Theatre of Youth, Bratislava/Slovakia
Teaching activities: 2003-2008: teacher of puppet stage design in experimental workshop, State Puppet Theatre, Stara Zagora/Bulgaria
Continuing collaboration with directors: Veselka Kuncheva, Camil Jishka, Peter Pashov, Vera Stoikova, Predrag Beloshevich
Awards: 2010: Award for Stage Design for “In the Dark” at the International Festival in Banja Luka, Bosnia. Award for creative achievement for “In the Dark” at the “Three are too Many – Two – Not Enough” International Puppet Festival. Special UNIMA award for “In the Dark” at the 20th International “Golden Spark” Puppet Festival, Kragujevac/Serbia. Award for best performance of 2010 from the Serbian Union of Puppet Artists for “In the Dark”. Award for Stage Design for “A Big Quixotic Mass” and “Beauty and the Beast” at the 14th International “Golden Dolphin” Puppet Festival, Varna. Award for Stage Design for “King Marko” at the 21st International Valise Theatre Festival, Lomza/Poland. Award for Stage Design and Puppets for “King Marko” of the Serbian Annual Council of puppet theatre, Novi Sad/Serbia. Award for Stage Design for “King Marko” at the international “Golden Spark” festival, Kragujevac/Serbia. Award for Stage Design and Puppets for “Thumbelina” at the “Three are too Many – Two – Not Enough” International Puppet Festival, Plovdiv/Bulgaria. 2005: Award for Puppets for “Thumbelina” at the “Golden Dolphin” International Puppet Festival, Varna/Bulgaria.
Additional information: Actor, puppet and drama stage designer.
• Елица Георгиева (Elica Georgieva)

* 1972, Rousse
Specialization: scenographer
Education: National Academy of Art, Sofia  
Collaboration with theatres: Varna Drama Theatre, Plovdiv Drama Theatre, Ruse Drama Theatre, Sofia Youth Drama Theatre, Sofia National Theatre
Participation in other important exhibitions: Various national exhibitions
Continuing collaboration with directors: Boyan Ivanov, Petar Kaukov, Stoyan Radev, etc.
Additional information: She graduated from the National Academy of Art, Department of Scenography. She works as a freelance designer in the areas of set and costume design for drama theatres in Sofia and other areas of the country.
• Петя Стойкова (Petya Stoikova)

* 1957, Sofia
Specialization: set designer, costume designer, puppet designer, scenographer
Education: National Academy of Art, Sofia
Collaboration with theatres: Theatre off the Channel Sofia, Ivan Vazov National Theatre, Theatre Sofia
Continuing collaboration with directors: Aleksander Morfov, Bina Haralampieva, Boiko Bogdanov, Marius Kurkinski, Plamen Markov etc.
Additional information: Freelance artist. Studied scenography at the National Academy of Fine Arts in Sofia. She exhibited at the PQ in 1979 (school section) and 1995.
• Никола Тороманов (Nikola Toromanov)

* 05.12.1968, Sofia, Bulgaria
Specialization: set designer, costume designer, lighting designer
Education: National Academy of Art, Sofia
Collaboration with theatres: National Theatre, Sofia; Varna Drama Theatre; Theatre of Nations, Moscow
Continuing collaboration with directors: Javor Gardev, Marius Kurkinski, Alexander Morfov
Additional information: He is a freelance set and costume designer. He has created designs for productions at theatres in Bulgaria and abroad and his design credits include several TV productions, books and catalogues.
• Антония Попова (Antonia Popova)

* 24.04.1980, Sofia
Specialization: set designer, costume designer, media artist, Graphic Designer
Education: BA in Scenography and MA in Multimedia Performance and Computer Animation, National Academy of Art, Sofia
Collaboration with theatres: Stoyan Bachvarov Drama Theatre, Varna; Nikola Vapcarov Drama Theatre, Blagoevgrad; Ivan Vazov National Theatre; Salza i Smyah Theatre, Sofia
Continuing collaboration with directors: Sofia Ristevska, Krum Filipov, Alexander Galperin
Additional information: Film and theatre set and costume designer.
• Нина Пашова (Nina Pashova)

* 10.04.1955, Sofia
Specialization: scenographer
Education: Scenography at the National Academy of Art, Sofia
Collaboration with theatres: Bulgarian Army Theatre, Sofia; Ivan Vazov National Theatre
Continuing collaboration with directors: Nikolay Lambrev, Boiko Iliev, Ivaylo Hristov, Staiko Murdjev

• Васил Абаджиев (Vasil Abadjiev)

* 30.10.1966, Sliven
Specialization: costume designer, painter , media artist, scenographer
Education: MFA, National Academy of Arts, Sofia
Collaboration with theatres: Ivan Vazov National Theatre; Little Theatre off the Channel; Satirical Theatre, Sofia; Theatre 199, Sofia; Center Stage Theatre, Santa Barbara/USA; Freie Kammerspiele, Magdeburg/Germany; Stoyan Bachvarov Drama Theatre, Bulgaria; Moon Theatre, Moscow/Russia
Participation in other important exhibitions: 2011 Sub stories, Rayko Aleksiev Gallery (2009); National M-Tel Exhibition (2009); “August in Art” fine arts exhibition, Varna (2006)
Continuing collaboration with directors: Lilia Abadjieva
Awards: Best Scenography of the Asceer Foundation for “Miss Julie” by August Strindberg, National Theatre, Bulgaria (2010); Best Scenography of Asceer Foundation for “Endgame” by Samuel Beckett, Theatre 199, Bulgaria (2009); Best Scenography for “Romeo and Juliet”, Russian performance at The World Theatre Festival in Cairo/Egypt (2006)

• Огняна Серафимова (Ogniana Serafimova)

* 1984, Varna
Specialization: costume designer, scenographer
Education: National Art Academy, Sofia

• Иван Карев (Ivan Karev)

* 07.09.1960, Plovdiv
Specialization: set designer, costume designer, lighting designer, scenographer
Education: MA Scenography at the National Academy of Arts - Sofia, Bulgaria
Collaboration with theatres: Constantine Velichkov Theatre, Pazardzhik; Salza i Smyah Theatre, Sofia; Kardzhali Drama Theatre; Theatre of Satire; Ivan Vazov National Theatre; Kalejdoskop Teater, Malmö/Sweden; Skopje Drama Theatre, Macedonia
Continuing collaboration with directors: Dimitar Ignatov, Vladlen Alexandrov, Zeljko Santrac, Grisha Ostrovsky, Krasimir Spasov, Iskender Altin etc.
Additional information: He works in the areas of set and costume design for drama theatre, multimedia and installation art. He is the resident designer and technical director at the Drama Theatre Pazardjik.
• Чавдар Гюзелев (Chavdar Gyuzelev)

* 1961, Sofia, Bulgaria
Specialization: set designer, costume designer
Education: Bulgarian National Academy of fine arts
Additional information: Graphic Designer and Illustrator for several Magazines. Stage Designer for television and theatre. From 2007 has been working as a Professor at the New Bulgarian University (Department of Visual Arts).