ATCA at IATC World Congress | Reports from the Field
ATCA was represented at the 2026 International Association of Theatre Critics (IATC) World Congress and General Assembly in Craiova, Romania (held May 21, 2026 to May 25, 2026) by Executive Committee Vice Chair Lou Harry and Executive Committee member Amanda L. Andrei.. ATCA is well-represented at IATC events during this era as member Jeffrey Eric Jenkins convened the proceedings as IATC President, and was re-elected to this position during the conference.
Lou and Amanda provided a detailed dispatch to ATCA members through the member newsletter, most of which is included here.
“Housed at Craiova University, official events began on May 21 with welcomes from Lia Olguța Vasilescu, the mayor of Craiova, Vlad Drăgulescu, the director of Shakespeare International Festival and Jenkins. Then it was onto the scholarly work, with papers presented from journalists from around the world, all under the umbrella of the conference theme: “Is Shakespeare Still Our Contemporary?: Rethinking the Bard in a World he Never Imagined.” Topics included “Fathers of Invention: Shakespeare’s Clowns as Prototypes of (Post)Modern Political Demagogue,” “Feminist Strategic Adaptations of Shakespearean Drama,” and “Reimagining Shakespeare from Latin America.”
Coffee and lunch breaks provided time to connect or reconnect with IATC members from around the world.
May 22 centered on AITC business, with updates on finances, presentation by board candidates, and elections, including the reelection of Jenkins as the organization’s president. This was followed by the presentation of the Thalia Prize, AITC’s award for outstanding contribution to the field of theatre criticism, to Maria Shevtsova, professor emerita at Goldsmiths University of London, whose books include Rediscovering Stanislavsky, Directors/Directing: Conversations on Theatre, and Sociology of Theatre and Performance.
The congress was concurrent with the Craiova International Shakespeare Festival (May 21-31), attracting productions from South Africa, Japan, Canada, France, the United Kingdom, and more. Street performers, student shows, puppetry, art installations, and historical demonstrations stretched through the city center to the Shakespeare Village, a small reconstruction of 17th century Elizabethan trade sites along with a modern concert venue and shopping stalls, in the nearby sprawling Romanescu Park.
An additional excursion on May 24 brought some IATC participants to Târgu Jiu, a town known for several magnificent large-scale stone sculptures by Constantin Brâncuși, including The Endless Column and The Table of Silence. By May 25, the American delegation wrapped up, returning to Bucharest and eventually home.”
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In addition, Lou Harry has published his own separate account of this time in Romania at the IATC congress and the Craiova International Shakespeare Festival.
“I had the honor of representing the U.S. as a delegate to the International Association of Theatre Critics congress in Craiova, Romania in late May. The fringe benefit of that was the chance to attend productions at the wildly ambitious and wide-ranging Craiova International Shakespeare Festival.
Of the four productions I witnessed, the most satisfying and consistently impressive was a homegrown King Lear, anchored by a riveting Claudiu Bleon in the title role. With all audience members seated three quarters around the National Theatre stage, there was no escaping the intensity of the action (or the asshole in the front row who was scrolling on his phone during the climactic scene).
So rich were the performances that I found myself only occasionally glancing at the unobtrusive projected English titles. With the storm downplayed and a greater emphasis on palace intrigue than Lear’s emotional arc, I can see purists being a bit put off, but I appreciated the kinetic energy and up-close intensity it offered.
The most visually exciting of the work I saw was Titus Andronicus Reborn, from the Japanese company Kakushinhan.
Even those unfamiliar with Shakespeare’s goriest work may realize early on that “reborn” here means recontextualizing, adding characters (including a young boy and a crow), incorporating traditional Japanese theater elements, and breaking the fourth wall (the strongest moment for me was a narrator confrontationally asking the audience why they would attend such a show).
Although at 2 1/2 hours without intermission — compounded by an over 20-minute late start — I’d be lying if I didn’t say it was a rough sit. By the time Titus’ notorious dinner party arrived, I had mentally clocked out.
Less interesting was II from Cape Town, South Africa-based Abrahamse & Meyer Productions. A fusion of Christopher Marlowe’s Edward II with Shakespeare’s Richard II, it did no favors to either.
Instead, the two troubled kings engaged in a kind of therapy session with each other, exchanging passages from their plays mixed with original material that trivialized both. Without the context of each original, the drama was drained.
Meanwhile, Mercutio (from Paris, France’s Collectif NOX) was more playful, mixing pop music and rap battling. Clever, at times, it nonetheless felt overly padded, as if the creators were trying to hide the fan fiction nature of the project.
That quartet of shows is just a small portion of what’s offered at the festival. In addition to a long list of additional full productions, the festival includes an outdoor Shakespeare village, free concerts, art exhibitions, lectures and more. If it was a few hours away instead of requiring a 24-hour three-plane journey, I’d happily return.”
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— Assembled by Martha Wade Steketee.
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