“All the plays have previously been staged, and this will give us a good opportunity to choose the best plays while helping us to organize a better festival this year,” Borhani Marand said during a press conference in Tehran on Tuesday.
He noted that the organizers have almost forgotten that the festival is a celebration and have somehow ignored its celebratory aspects for years.
“The best thing is to understand and follow the rules of holding a superb celebration. We believe it is the right of every individual to attend a festival, which is mixed with celebration,” he added.
The Fajr theater festival is one of the events that Iran organizes every year during February to celebrate the anniversary of the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
Due to current adverse economic conditions confronting the country, Borhani Marand also expressed his hope that the international competition would go well.
Saeid Asadi, the director of the international competition, also attending the conference, said that eight international troupes are expected to take part in the festival.
“The foreign troupes will also give performances in the street theater section as well,” he said.
A number of foreign theatrical figures have also been invited to attend meetings with Iranian thespians and directors. They are also scheduled to hold workshops on the sidelines of the festival.
“These meetings appear to help introduce Iranian theater productions to the world,” Asadi added.
The festival will also host the representatives of several world theater companies, the names of which will be announced later.