DoSEL – Drama of Smaller European Languages, an international project dedicated to the translation and promotion of plays written in smaller European languages and bringing together eight partner organisations, has reached another important milestone with the publication of the English-language anthology EIGHT PLAYS. Drama of Smaller European Languages. The book was presented on 9 July 2026 at the prestigious Avignon Theatre Festival in France.
The presentation took place as part of the European Theatre Talks series organised by the European Theatre Convention (ETC) at the Cloître Saint-Louis in Avignon. Rok Bozovičar, Director of the Prešeren Theatre Kranj (Slovenia) and leader of the DoSEL project, introduced both the project and the newly published collection.
The anthology includes English translations of the following plays:
- Eneko Sagardoy, Moto – Membra Jesu Nostri, translated from Basque by Justin Peterson and Tim Nicholson
- Dora Šustić, Pičman, translated from Croatian by Vladislav Beronja
- Lon Kirkop, A Moon of Our Own, translated from Maltese by Kat Storace
- Lluïsa Cunillé, The Donkey and the Stone, translated from Catalan by Dustin Langan
- Maša Pelko, Für Ophelia (A Mythology of Drowning), translated from Slovenian by Barbara Skubic
- Jeton Neziraj, The Adventures of the Bosch Family in Unmikistan, translated from Albanian by Alexandra Channer
- Ekaterina Georgieva, Free Falling, translated from Bulgarian by Atanas Igov
- Piret Jaaks, Do Animals Know How to Count?, translated from Estonian by Justin Petrone
“As Umberto Eco famously wrote—and as we heard many times throughout this project—’The language of Europe is translation.’ Translation is not merely a technical process of transferring words from one language to another; it is an act of encounter, curiosity, and mutual recognition. It allows stories to travel, ideas to resonate across borders, and cultures to discover one another. The eight plays gathered in this volume are the result of that belief. Through translation, they have found a shared space in which they can be read, discussed, staged, and reimagined by audiences and theatre professionals across Europe and beyond,” writes Rok Bozovičar in the book’s introduction.
The anthology was edited by Dino Pešut. Tamara Bračič Vidmar served as managing editor, Jana Renée Wilcoxen as language editor, and Ana Bassin designed the publication. The book was published by the Prešeren Theatre Kranj and will be distributed by the project partners across all participating countries.
The DoSEL project aims to increase the international visibility and accessibility of dramatic works originally written in smaller European languages and to encourage their staging across Europe. The project brings together eight European cultural organisations: the National Agency for the Performing Arts (Malta), Teatro Arriaga and Sala Beckett (Spain), the Croatian National Theatre in Zagreb (Croatia), the Estonian Theatre Agency, the National Theatre of Kosovo, the Ivan Vazov National Theatre (Bulgaria), and the Prešeren Theatre Kranj (Slovenia).
Photo caption: Cover of the anthology EIGHT PLAYS. Drama of Smaller European Languages.
Photos from the European Theatre Talks in Avignon: Pascal Gely
„Il-lingwa tal-Ewropa hija t-traduzzjoni.“ Umberto Eco
Email: info@tsd.si
Address: Prešeren Theatre Kranj, Glavni trg 6, 4000 Kranj, Slovenia
Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). Neither the European Union nor EACEA can be held responsible for them.
