Balerinata, koyato zapali operetata

Premiered on April 2, 2025 at the Vasil Drumev Drama and Puppet Theatre in Shumen, this brand‑new Bulgarian play is built around a razor‑sharp backstage confession and the myths we tell ourselves about “making it.” The tone is witty yet tender; expect laughter edged with bite rather than pure farce. The chamber setting draws you close enough to catch every side‑glance and unsaid word.

At the heart of the evening stands guest star Albena Koleva — a longtime member of the Ivan Vazov National Theatre company and recipient of honors such as the Golden Feather (2010) and Best Actress at the Bitola International Monodrama Festival (2012). Opposite her is Vanessa Peyankova from the Shumen ensemble, whose background in dance and gymnastics gives the movement passages a lived‑in physicality and poise rarely seen in spoken‑word comedy. Together they navigate ambition, compromise and stage superstitions with a conspiratorial wink to anyone who has ever stood in the wings.

How it’s staged

• Author and director: Ventsislav Kulev. His approach favors a clean, non‑illustrative set that lets the actors and score carry the storytelling.
• Scenography and costumes: Elena Ivanova — elegant, functional designs that pivot quickly between rehearsal room and spotlight.
• Choreography: Anna Pampulova — ballet vocabulary slips into operetta flair, then back to everyday gesture, charting the heroine’s inner weather.
• Music: Vasil Dimitrov — cues and interludes that nudge the comedy toward bittersweet revelation.
• Hand‑crafted puppet by Nadya and Darko Kovachevski — an unexpected “stage partner” that adds irony and a hint of nostalgia.

Running on the theatre’s intimate Chamber Stage, the performance clocks in at around 90 minutes — enough time to sketch a whole artistic lifetime without an intermission drag. The premiere was followed by an additional showing on April 4, 2025, and the title has since settled into the Shumen repertoire, drawing both ballet lovers and devotees of Bulgarian spoken theatre.

If you’re curating a night of sharp, contemporary Bulgarian humor and character work, you might also like these titles on our platform: the relationship games of Otchayani sapruzi, the high‑energy entertainment of Rachkov i jenite, the upstairs‑downstairs gags in Sasedite otgore, or the reflective punchlines of I tova shte mine - Stand Up Comedy Special.

Good to know: Chamber hall intimacy means sightlines are excellent throughout. Dance shoes squeak, whispers carry, and the smallest gesture reads — exactly the right frame for a story about craft, grit and the heat that keeps performers returning to the stage night after night.