Fast Forward 2024

A jury is a group of people who have been invited to publicly describe what they’ve seen. Of course there are always different perspectives on a production and that’s why it’s so interesting to hear about these different perspectives. For the first time, this year there will be a young jury at Fast Forward. Five young people and one mentor will visit the festival together and make their decision on the last night of the festival, just like the international jury of experts will with the Festival Award and the audience will with the Audience Award. We’re already looking forward to an awards ceremony with lots of different voices!

FESTIVAL JURY

The 2022 festival jury includes a curator, a director, a theatre critic and the artistic director of the Staatsschauspiel Dresden. On the last night, it will award a prize to one of the eight festival shows. The prize is an invitation to the winner to produce a new piece of work at the Staatsschauspiel Dresden. Before their last consultation, the jury will meet representatives of the acting ensemble to discuss the productions they have seen.

Anke Dürr *1969 studied sociology, political science, communications and theatre studies in Munich and Bologna, Italy. She was trained at the Deutsche Journalistenschule. From 1995, she was employed at the Spiegel, for many years she was theatre editor of the KulturSPIEGEL; she is now head of the Germany / Panorama department. She has been a juror for festivals including the Berliner Theatertreffen and the Boy Gobert Prize.

Lara Staal *1984 studied theatre pedagogy, theatre studies and dramaturgy in the Netherlands and was curator at the producing theatre Frascati in Amsterdam, before she continued her work freelance. As a curator, theatre maker, writer and researcher, she explores socio-political topics for which she develops formats of political action and reflection for theatre, including in collaboration with the NTGent and the Kammerspiele München.

Data Tavadze *1989 in Georgia, is a director and author and since 2008 has been managing the independent Royal District Theatre in Tbilisi. He is the co-founder of several festivals, especially for contemporary drama. The performances he has developed toured internationally, especially his adaption of ancient Greek drama, women of troy, which won him the Fast Forward jury prize in 2016. Since then he worked a. o. at Deutsches Theater Berlin, Maxim Gorki Theater, Schauspiel Frankfurt. In Dresden, he has staged TRANSIT and KABALE UND LIEBE.

Joachim Klement *1961 in Düsseldorf, dramaturge at theatres including Theater Graz, Deutsches Schauspielhaus Hamburg, Nationaltheater Mannheim (head dramaturge), head dramaturg and vice-artistic director at the Bremer Theater and at the Düsseldorfer Schauspielhaus, artistic director of the Staatstheater Braunschweig, since 2017 artistic director of the Staatsschauspiel Dresden.

THE FAST FORWARD YOUNG JURY

A festival for young directors should have a young jury too. The young generation’s view is no doubt a very unique one. At the same time, art, theatre, performance and storytelling, on and in front of the stage, is always about the resonating body that we are as the audience. It’s about the echo that a production triggers in us, whether that’s identification, distancing, sympathy or rejection, the experience of a new feeling or an intense encounter with a thought. Being the audience is sometimes work, theatre professionals know this very well. That’s why we’re happy to welcome five young people to the young jury for the very first time, who will watch the eight festival productions with professional support and also award a prize just like the Fast Forward festival jury. They’ll meet the artists, have discussions, give praise, applaud and enjoy the whole festival programme. The day of the award ceremony, the young jury will announce and explain their choice, and then the Fast Forward Young Jury Prize will be awarded for the first time!

AUDIENCE AWARD

After four days of the festival, we would also like to know from the audience which of the eight performances was most touching, surprising, provocative, inspiring or made you think. We are still figuring out how to organise the voting this year. But one thing is for sure already: every vote counts!