Paintings from an Execution | BTF 2026

“Ivan Radoev” Drama-Puppet Theatre – Pleven

In a world where those in power attempt to dictate the truth while art refuses to submit, an uncompromising conflict between the artist and the system is born.

Howard Barker’s Scenes from an Execution comes to life in director Staiko Murdzhev’s contemporary stage interpretation. With his signature clean, modern aesthetic, he creates a world in which form is stripped down to what is essential, allowing one of the production’s central questions to stand out: can art remain free when those in power insist on determining its meaning?

At the heart of this conflict is Radina Kardzhilova’s powerful stage presence, as she creates a character who is at once strong, fragile, and defiant. Around her, the Pleven theatre ensemble builds a vivid, charged stage world in which irony, cruelty, and human vulnerability continually collide.

About the production

Scenes from an Execution is a production about the price of freedom, the boundaries between art and power, and the artist’s right to remain true to their own truth.

A production that offers no easy answers, but leaves its questions alive long after the performance has ended.

Age restriction: 14+

Creative team

• Author: Howard Barker
• Director: Staiko Murdzhev
• Translation: Haralampi Anichkin
• Set and costume design: Nikola Nalbantov
• Composer: Petar Dundakov

Cast

Dimitar Zhivkov, Delyan Iliev, Vasil Vitanov, Sergey Konstantinov, Asen Dankov, Adrian Filipov, Ovanes Torosyan, Ivan Zhuntovski, Nikolay Stoychev, Marian Dulchev, Teona Dimova, Yoana Kircheva, Kamelia Khatib, and Radina Kardzhilova – guest actor