Fabulamundi, Playwriting Europe. New Voices – an Insider’s View, Review and Interview
Anda Cadariu*
Abstract
The hereby essay has at its core the European project Fabulamundi Playwriting Europe, viewed from multiple insider perspectives. This hybrid text combines performative, narrative, journalistic and academic genres, bringing together a personal account from the author, a book review, an interview and a final section which includes the outlook of project coordinators and initiators.
Keywords: Fabulamundi, playwriting, interdisciplinarity, networking
An Insider’s View
What caught my eye when I first heard about the European project Fabulamundi. Playwriting Europe was the melodic, witty and dynamic wording of its title. When playwright and project coordinator Alina Nelega asked me to join the team in 2017, as an academic who had worked in the fields of journalism, culture and PR, I took on the role of the communication and image manager on behalf on one of the long-term partners in the project, the University of Arts in Târgu-Mureș, Romania.
My theatre-afficionado side made it all the more obvious that I did not want to be an “outsider,” when it came to choosing sides – I wanted to be an “nsider,” especially because I could ascertain that, in order to promote any kind of product (including – and maybe particularly – cultural projects), one has to believe in their value themselves. Thus, besides making some of the workshops, events, conferences and publications in Romanian (and not only) visible online and offline on behalf of the University of Arts in Târgu-Mureș, I started a series of interviews with the “stars” of the project – the playwrights themselves.[1] Fabulamundi had sparked my curiosity, becoming a part of my professional story at the dawn of Playwriting Europe. Beyond Borders?, an edition of the then-still-young project, which started small, won European short-term and long-term grants, and grew into a widely known and prestigious umbrella-program for European playwrights.
The aim of the Beyond Borders? edition of Fabulamundi. Playwriting Europe (2017-2020), previous to the recently completed New Voices phase (2023-2025) was to promote established European playwrights from 10 countries. New Voices, nevertheless, took one step even further in terms of both knowledge-dissemination and networking, as it relied on established playwrights who acted as tutors, whose aim was to nurture and guide, through workshops and presentations, young people (more than 400 high school and university students) on their way to becoming playwrights themselves.
The project offered workshop participants the possibility of taking the first step towards playwriting, providing a basic toolkit and a safe space where they could get creative. The twinned scheme used as a working algorithm enabled the co-tutoring mechanism, which proved more than beneficial for the participants, who found themselves discovering new writing techniques, dramatic devices, a view of the world from the writer’s perspective, and the possibility to find their own voice.
Like canto, the project aimed to train these new voices. The endeavour to stay true to one’s profession and find one’s peers (which was the signet of the Beyond Borders? edition) was naturally followed by the wish to pass professional knowledge on to the next generation of artists (as proposed by the New Voices edition). Thanks to its longevity and consistency alike, Fabulamundi created a European network which coalesced around the art and craft of writing for the performing arts – with a particular emphasis on drama-oriented creative writing.
The low-status nature of the drama writer, as opposed to that of the actor and the “almighty” director is a territory Anna Wakulik, one of the artists I interviewed for Scena.ro theatre journal, has mapped.[2] Agreeing with Wakulik, it seems that the playwright is not truly acknowledged in a theatre environment, not fully accepted as either a theatre-maker or a writer, and both professional fields seem to be playing some kind of table tennis – with the playwright cast as the ball.
This is what Fabulamundi has tried to change: the playwright’s status from “seriously underrated” to that of a “key-player” in the game of theatre – at least in the European cultural environment.[3]
An Insider’s Review
Özgül Demiralp (ed.),Fabulamundi New Voices – Diversifying Theatre & Fabulamundi New Voices – Playwriting Practices in Theatre (2 vol.), European Theatre Convention, Berlin, 2025
Fabulamundi‘s impact on European playwriting becomes obvious the most recent publications within its long history – which consists not only of workshops, networking and new plays, but also of editorial projects.
However, should professionals in the field of drama expect works like Writing a Play by Steve Gooch or David Mamet’s Theatre, or even Keith Johnstone’s Impro for Storytellers, they would be surprised to find something altogether different. The Fabulamundi casebooks are specifically tailored on, for and by the project; in these two volumes, the reader gets acquainted with what the Fabulamundi partners (also acting as cultural stakeholders who offer sturdy institutional infrastructures for the development of new plays) and the Fabulamundi playwrights (also writing about their experience as playwriting tutors) aimed and achieved throughout this edition. The books per se should be appraised as a binomial in order to get the gist of the project’s dialectics.[4]
The first volume, Fabulamundi New Voices – Diversifying Theatre – A Casebook has been panned out by the European Theatre Convention editors in four sections, a structure which gives it a harmonious, choir-like quality. The casebook is a display of different, yet complementary voices. While in the first two parts (Youth, Inclusion and the Future of Dramatic Writing and Models of Practice – Designing Ecosystems for Contemporary Drama) the reader predominantly “hears” the voices of the partners giving an account of how the project has impacted their organisations, the third and fourth sections add a counterpoint to the more institutionally-oriented articles in the first two. In Section III – Cultural Policy, Rights and Emerging Visions, Lars Ebert writes about Cultural Leadership Through Cultural Democracy (pp. 56-66), while Patrik Lazić and Magdalena Barile both go beyond the framework of the cultural and political grounds that are in the very nature of any European project, and tackle the core of Fabulamundi. Thus, Lazić proposes that an organisational structure dedicated to playwrights should be created. The author focuses on what playwrights lack nowadays in terms of legislative support, visibility and fees – in both local and European theatres. He looks at contracts, at the playwright’s status, identifying problems – but also offering a possible solution: an international agency, which he sees as an “alliance” – in his own words (69).
While this military term and militantism in general might have thrown me, as a reader, I particularly welcomed an intervention from Lazić, playwright, director and a member of the Serbian Fabulamundi partner Heartefact. In Why We Need European Alliances for Playwrights: Copyright Questions, Exchange on Contracts and Payments (69 – 78), Lazić makes a point not only through its contents, but also through its persuasive style, convincing any audience of the real, stringent problems playwrights are confronted with. Indeed, an alliance seems to be what drama writers need right now, and the word is not a misnomer; there are many NGOs – foundations, associations etc. – supporting authors, but “association”, especially given the current political climate, seems to have become too mild a term for what can be easily perceived as a war zone. The “Arts and Culture” witticism attributed to Churchill[5] seems appropriate if we try to define the tone of Lazić’s contribution. The question “What are we fighting for?” has more than one answer: for culture in general, but, in the given context, for the crystallisation of the playwright’s much-ignored status – in particular.
Thus, Fabulamundi has given playwrights a flag under which they can fight – and win with flying colours. Within this project, the participants played so well with words that one of their games resulted in a playwrights’ charter. Magdalena Barile focuses on the topic in her contribution, Manifesto or Not Manifesto. After skimming through several manifestos that have become milestones in the history of art (the Surrealist manifesto, the Dada manifesto, the Theatre of the Absurd Manifesto etc.), the author gives a warm and personal account (“policy-of-truth”-defined) of the process (with its ups and downs) during which the Fabulamundi members tried to come up with a set of principles, values and norms.
Every account of a theatre or festival as a beneficiary of (and a partner in) this project is precious and stands out as an example of best practices. However, the bigger picture is shown in this volume’s closing article, which draws an outline of the vision adopted by the NGO that initiated and coordinated Fabulamundi – PAV. Authored by Valentina de Simone, the intervention, titled Listening to the Future: Fabulamundi Beyond the Stage (102 – 106), testifies to what the project meant and did for those who were a part of it, as playwrights, coordinators, promotion officers, theatre managers, cultural policy makers, playwriting tutors and emerging playwrights.
The second casebook, Fabulamundi New Voices – Playwriting Practices in Theatre[6] is as much of an eye candy as the first one, since it also focuses more on – as its title signals – the practical, rather than the theoretical. The volume consists of a plethora of unique perspectives on Fabulamundi. Playwriting Europe. New Voices: Claudia di Giacomo and Roberta Scaglione (PAV) speak about Fabulamundi as a “blueprint for collaborative playwriting in Europe” (10-16), Constance de Saint Remy presents the reader with an account of a workshop she tutored via WhatsApp text messages (78-83), while Elise Wilk writes an insight which could serve as the scaffolding for a creative curriculum. Wilk’s story, The Fish in the Coffin: A Personal Experience on Giving and Receiving Feedback (94 – 101), is an account of her own modus operandi as a professional and tutor. More societally-oriented, Mihaela Michailov focuses on the political and its effects on the intimate life of (and subject matters approached by) participants in her workshops, while Alexandra Koch and Ingeborg von Zadow’s contribution takes the form of a dialogue about a workshop the two playwrights co-tutored in Fabulamundi New Voices.
However, la pièce de résistance is an interview conducted by Roberto Scarpetti under the title of one of his workshops, Me, Myself and AI. If any contribution to these casebooks can be looked at as a teaser, this is the one: in a most performative turn, the author asks the questions, but the respondent is… GhatGPT. The interview – a surprising dialogue between the art-ist and the art-ificial – is, in itself, a postdramatic and a postmodern piece.
The two volumes published with the participation of the European Theatre Convention look and feel fresh, dynamic and professional. Moreover, since we do tend to judge books by their cover, a simple editorial trick (or is it a tweak?) highlights the most relevant parts of the articles, making the book – as an object – rewarding both in PDF and in print, for readers who want a bird’s-eye view of Fabulamundi, as well as for those who would like more detailed accounts from the partners and playwrights.
An Insider’s Interview
One of the Fabulamundi co-creators is former project coordinator for the University of Arts Târgu-Mureș, Alina Nelega. An awarded writer and playwright herself, Nelega sheds even more light on the “inside story”:
Anda Cadariu: Alina Nelega, you were a part Fabulamundi since its inception. How did it all begin?
Alina Nelega: Actually, I was a part of the project even before it began, since the first application, in 2012, was rejected by Culture Europe, but we decided to start anyway and devised a bilateral collaboration with our Italian partners, with Carlotta Garlanda specifically, whom I had met in Rome, on the occasion of a show at the Romanian Cultural Institute. After that, we came back with another application and that one was accepted. This is how it all began and grew in the long run, becoming a strong and important European network of playwrights and companies, dedicated to the promotion of new writing and the production of new plays. At that moment I was the artistic director of the National Theatre of Târgu-Mureș, and I had coordinated the project for three years, until I left the theatre and took the project with me, at the University of Arts – until then, a partner at a local level. It proved to be a more open place for emerging playwrights and a hub for experimenting new forms and practising, for the students of the Playwriting Master Course, but also for the Acting and Directing students.
What did the project mean for you as a playwright and project coordinator on behalf of the University of Arts?
I have always considered myself more than a playwright, being also a professor and taking responsibility in promoting other writers, encouraging them to keep believing in what they did and providing a safe space for their work. That is what I was trying to do at the university, and Fabulamundi. Playwriting Europe was a great opportunity to expand this space and ensure international visibility for the new writers. Also, it provided a vital exchange of information on other European playwrights’ perspective, not only by reading their plays, but also by travelling and meeting with them, collaborating and sharing insights of their work. As a playwright, I had myself benefitted from this experience, from the inspiring exchange Fabulamundi offered, and from the vivid dynamics of the network.
Fabulamundi aims for as wide an audience as possible when it comes to the importance of the word in the structure of performances, including nonverbal ones – so, even in its loose meaning. (As Derrida puts it, Il n’y a pas de hors-texte[7]). As a former tutor of the Playwriting MA at the University of Arts, what have you taught the students about a) writing a play and b) gaining visibility as playwrights?
Being a practical process, the teaching is very informal and loose indeed – I mostly provided feedback, advice and opportunities for my students. I urged them to take the liberty to play, to experiment with forms and contents, to take risks and follow their instincts, have no fear and trust themselves. Teaching playwriting is more like discovering your inner self and going with your own truth.
Gaining visibility as a playwright is not a purpose in itself, I don’t think you can control it – but what you can control is your determination to keep on doing what you do and enjoy every opportunity to relate to people and be a part of a community of writers.
Fabulamundi is, in itself, a cultural promotion project. It makes the art of playwriting visible. So – to dot the is and cross the ts – as a PR, I promoted a project the very aim of which was promotion. In the previous editions, you, as a project coordinator, selected the playwrights for workshops and stagings of their plays, and in this edition, New Voices, you selected Elise Wilk as the tutor of potential new playwrights. How did you choose whom to… promote?
In the previous editions, I trusted my instinct as a professor and I promoted the writers I found more challenging, including Elise Wilk, who is one our most remarkable assets, and I also chose her to take my place as a tutor of the Playwriting Master Course. Following that, it is only natural that I considered Elise the best tutor for the New Voices project – and I was not wrong, look – the proof is in the pudding!
I have interviewed quite a few Fabulamundi playwrights (Anna Wakulik, Patrik Lazić, Bernhard Studlar, Ingeborg von Zadow, Elise Wilk), and there is a recurring question in most of these interviews. It just dawned on me that I never asked you this question, not even informally, during our long professional relationship. I will ask it now and I realise I cannot wait to hear the answer: As an accomplished author, if you could give emerging writers only one piece of advice, what would it be?
Have faith, keep playing, don’t let success or failure change what you are!
The Insiders’ View
Nelega’s final words in our interview seem to map out the professional line along which other members of the project have also been working. One of them, Héctor Manchego, who contributed to Fabulamundi as a photographer/videographer, but is also a writer, created a video version of “the insiders’ view.” His film, In a New Light. Short Conversations with European playwrights, is like a play made of monologues. It is a kaleidoscope. Addictive and rewarding, symmetric yet dynamic, informative and mind-opening, it amounts to an experience I recommend to anyone interested in the art of dramatic writing.
Should one zoom in on the landscape lying beyond the playwrights shown “in a new light”, beyond the lively atmosphere at the workshops, beyond the cells and molecules of this project, one could identify the atom underlying the constellation-like structure of Fabulamundi. Playwriting Europe. New Voices. This edition can be regarded as a game-changer. It has brought young people closer to the theatre, it has enriched the common weltanschauung. It was also a story about words, nurturing emerging playwrights, while peer-to-peer learning and sharing were key ingredients in an adventure which has attained its purpose: discovery.
This process of discovery not only uncovers new plays, but it also reveals the story of how these new plays are written and how Fabulamundi was initiated, from the perspective of the NGO acting as the main project coordinator. It is in their capacity as representatives of PAV that I have asked Claudia Di Giacomo and Valentina De Simone to share, as a conclusion, their own “insiders’ view”:
Fabulamundi Playwriting Europe has been a journey of exploration, creativity, and collaboration over the past years. We are a community that embraces a plurality of voices and perspectives. More than individuals working in different countries, we are a collective of artists and institutions united by a shared vision. Through our collaborative efforts, we strive to create a space where every artist feels valued, heard, and empowered to share their unique ideas.
Together, we have been learning how to bridge the differences that enrich us and transform them into an added value. We believe in fostering a creative environment that is inclusive, respectful, kind, and supportive of everyone. International collaboration and artistic encounters between cultures and across borders are, to us, radical and vital acts.
As we look to the future, our journey is far from over. We stand on the threshold of new horizons, filled with possibilities and opportunities for growth. Our commitment to nurturing a supportive and inspiring environment, especially for the new generations, remains unwavering.
Endnotes
[1] These interviews were published in Romanian – and some of them in English, as well – in the cultural journals Observator Cultural, Scena.ro, LiterNet.ro; two of them were re-published, with the editors’ approval in the Fabulamundi casebooks edited by the European Theatre Convention.
[2] Anna Wakulik, in Anda Cadariu, Dramaturga Anna Wakulik: „Cred că nu poți scrie cu adevărat dacă nu ai capacitatea de a-i înțelege pe ceilalți”, in Scena.ro, August 12th, 2025, accessed October 19th 2025 [online] (RO) – quote in its original English version: “Because we are somewhere on the border of literature and theatre, we are also nowhere – we are not at literary festivals, because we are not literary enough, we are not at theatre festivals either – because we are not as strongly associated with theatre as the figure of the director-demiurge […]”.
[3] In Romania alone, new plays lying in the purgatory of the seemingly eternal wait to be discovered have reached the heaven of being staged, and their authors – the well-deserved chance of entering the local cultural circuit. Polish playwright Elżbieta Chowaniec and Catalan playwright Esteve Soler are only two of many success stories. Gardenia, by Elżbieta Chowaniec was staged at Teatrul Odeon Bucharest, a partner in Fabulamundi, registering great success with the general public, while Esteve Soler became well-known in Romania thanks to his Indignation trilogy (n. a.).
[4] Both casebooks can be consulted free of charge, in print (where they come as climate-neutrally-issued booklets) and online- in PDF.
[5] The story is that when Churchill was asked to cut funding to the arts in order to support the war effort in World War II, he responded “Then what would we be fighting for?” (Dan Evon, Snopes.com, apud Richard M. Langtworth, The Arts: “What are we fighting for?”, [online], February 3rd, 2017. Accessed 19 Oct. 2025.
[6] As I am myself a contributor to this volume, I will start with a statement which, I hope, will alleviate any ethical concerns about this article: I only ask the questions. It is for the playwrights I spoke to and their insights that one might want to read the interviews I proposed for publication to the ETC editors (n. a.).
[7] In English translation, “There is nothing outside of the text” in, Jacques Derrida, (158).
Bibliography
Cadariu, Anda. “Dramaturga Anna Wakulik: ‘Cred că nu poți scrie cu adevărat dacă nu ai capacitatea de a-i înțelege pe ceilalți.’” Scena.ro, 12 Aug. 2025, revistascena.ro. Accessed 19 Oct. 2025.
Demiralp, Özgül, editor. Fabulamundi New Voices – Diversifying Theatre and Fabulamundi New Voices – Playwriting Practices in Theatre. 2 vols., European Theatre Convention, 2025.
Derrida, Jacques. Of Grammatology. Translated by G. C. Spivak, Johns Hopkins UP, 1976.
Gooch, Steve. Writing a Play. 3rd ed., A&C Black Academic and Professional, 2004.
Huizinga, Johan. Homo Ludens: A Study of the Play Element in Culture. Martino Publishing, 2014.
Johnstone, Keith. Impro for Storytellers. Routledge, 2014.
Langworth, Richard M. “The Arts: What Are We Fighting For?” Winston Churchill Institute, 3 Feb. 2017.
Mamet, David. Theatre. Faber & Faber, 2010.
Fabulamundi. Accessed 29 Oct. 2025.
European Theatre Convention. Accessed 29 Oct. 2025.
LiterNet. Accessed 29 Oct. 2025.
Revista Scena.ro. Accessed 29 Oct. 2025.
Fabulamundi. Playwriting Europe. New Voices (project no. 101098923) is 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.
*Anda Cadariu is a writer, translator, and lecturer at the University of Arts in Târgu-Mureș, Romania, and a member of AICT.ro and UNITER. She holds a BA in Romanian and English Language and Literature, an MA in Cultural Anthropology, and a PhD in Theatre Studies, awarded Summa cum laude. She has received international research and visiting scholarships and worked as a cultural adviser, editorialist, and editor. Cadariu’s literary work includes essays, fiction, and reviews published in journals such as Echinox, Vatra, and Observator Cultural. She has coordinated translations of acclaimed plays and published her PhD thesis and several fiction works. Her photography is featured on her blog, //obiectiv subiectiv//, and her stories are available on Apple Books. She was also selected for international residencies, and her work has been translated and recognized abroad.
Copyright © 2025 Anda Cadariu
Critical Stages/Scènes critiques, #32, December 2025
e-ISSN: 2409-7411
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