International Puppet Theatre Festival "Three are too many, two - not enough" and TheatAir

25th edition of the International Puppet Theater Festival "Three are Too Many, Two - not Enough"
and
 TheatAir 2023
01 - 06 September 2023
Plovdiv, Bulgaria

Huge "Thank you" to all performers who applied for this year's XXV edition of the International Puppet Theater Festival "Three are Тoo Мany, Тwo - Not Enough" and X edition of the festival module for street performances TheatAir!

We will contact the selected performers for further details. 

The event is conducred with the financial support of the National Culture Fund, the Bulgarian Ministry of Culture and the Municipality of Plovdiv. The event is part of the Culture Calendar of the Municipality of Plovdiv.

The International Puppet-theatre Festival was created in 1977 and was called “International Preview of the Puppet Miniature – Plovdiv”. In 1990, after an interval of four years, the festival had been resumed under the name “Three Are Too Many, Two - Not Enough”. TheatAir is a festival for street atrs and open-air performances – theatre, circus, music and other performances. It begins in 2012 as a module of the International Puppet Theatre Festival for chamber performances “Three are too many, two – not enough”. From then on it gathers in Plovdiv, Bulgaria some of the most interesting and renowned street artists. The festival consists of performances for children and adults, without limitation to the form and genre. The only condition is that your show can be performed outdoors.
TheatAir is non-competitive. It takes place every year in the begging of September and is an integral part of the cultural life of Plovdiv. TheatAir brings together interesting and provocative troupes from around the world and gives them the opportunity to enjoy the wonderful audience in our city.

ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE OF THE FESTIVAL

The Festival is organized by the non-profit organization International Puppet-Theatre Festival “Three Are Too Many, Two - Not Enough” and State Puppet Theatre - Plovdiv. It is carried out with the support and under the patronage of the Bulgarian Ministry of Culture and the Municipality of Plovdiv. Other companies, associations and non-profit organizations participate as partners and co-organizers of the event. The Festival takes place in the first week of September on every other year, starting from 2012. The outdoor unit, “TheatAir”, may be an annual event, depending on the Festival’s budget. The funds for the organization and the implementation of the Festival are provided by: Plovdiv Municipality, Ministry of Culture, State Puppet Theatre - Plovdiv, sponsors, donations, joint-ventures, etc.

Aims of the festival

I. Encouragement and development of the chamber puppetry genre for children and adults.
II. Presenting current tendencies in puppetry and newest art achievements in small form staging.
III. Presenting street performances, acts and shows, united in an additional open-air unit, “TheatAir”, which are created for open-air spaces and are reflecting the contemporary approach of artists, presenting work in direct contact with the audience at an unusual and improvised environment.
IV. Distribution of the best performances, presented at the festival in Bulgaria and abroad.
V. Creating a professional network of artists and managers from Bulgaria and abroad.

STRUCTURE

The Festival is organized by State Puppet Theatre – Plovdiv and non-profitable organization International Puppet thearte festival “Three are too many, Two – not enough” under the patronage of the Plovdiv Municipality, the Bulgarian Ministry of Culture and the Bulgarian Center of UNIMA. Other non-profit organizations are also welcomed to become co-organizers of the Festival. The festival is biennale and takes place in the beginning of September.

REGULATIONS

I. I. The Festival and the additional units are settled by an Organization Committee, comprised by representatives of the non-profitable organization IPTF “Three Are Too Many, Two – Not Enough” and the General Manager of the State Puppet Theatre - Plovdiv. The members of the Committee have the right to include in the working process the employees of the State Puppet Theatre - Plovdiv, as well as other organizations and individuals, according to the Festival’s budget.

II. Regulations:

1.The Organization Committee sets the terms of the open call for selection of the applicants for the festival programme.
2. The Organization Committee approves applications, made by the terms of the open call and chooses a Selector/s, who signs a contract with State Puppet Theatre - Plovdiv..
3. The Organization Committee invites honourable guests of the Festival - writers, directors, composers, stage-designers, journalists and well-known actors; sets the official guest-list, and frames the ceremony for the opening and the closing of the Festival.
4. The Organization Committee makes protocols for all the financial-related decisions and coordinates them with the accounting office of State Puppet Theatre - Plovdiv.
5. The Festival is open to groups and theatres from Bulgaria and abroad.
6. Each theatre or group can participate with no more than two performances.
7. The candidates should send their filled-in application form via e-mail and/or by post, together with full-length recording of the shows through web-link or on CD/ DVD/ flash-stick, high quality digital photos and full technical rider and requirements.
8. Only small-scale performances /with up to 4 actors/ are included in the selection. The Selector preserves the right to include in the festival selection performance/s who are an exception of that regulation.
9. The performances in the Festival are divided into the two categories - competitive program and non-competitive program. All the shows in the TheatAir unit are in the off-program as well as the performances of State Puppet Theatre - Plovdiv are in the non-competitive program.
10. TheatAir unit is open for groups from Bulgaria and abroad and the limitation for up to 4 actors does not necessarily apply. It is not in the competitive program and aims to use the open public spaces and urban zones to promote the broad range of puppetry, and to intrigue wider audience.
11. TheatAir can be an annual unit, depending on the budget of the Festival. The content of the module is open to respond to the latest practices in puppetry.
12. The Festival covers the expenses for accommodation and meals. The transportation expenses are covered, by priority, by the participating theatre. The financial conditions for the foreign participating groups are subject to personal negotiations according to the budget of the festival. This is aslo valid for the supporting event.
13. Any income from the shows performance in the Festival program remains for State Puppet Theatre Plovdiv. The performances and shows in the programme of TheatAir are free of charge for the audience and the participating groups receive a contracted fee.
14. State Puppet Theatre - Plovdiv pays the required copyright percentage to the creative team of the performances in case of registered income and versus a presented copy of a valid contract with a Copyright Company.