Secret Jury and Awards

The first edition of the PRIENIKY International Theatre Festival will also feature a competitive element. However, its purpose is not to pit productions against one another or declare an ultimate winner. Instead, through these awards, we want to spotlight extraordinary and inspiring creative moments — and celebrate the people behind them, so that their courage and craft may inspire others.

Out of the fourteen productions in competition, the selections will be made by a secret jury — a jury so secret that its members will not even know who each other are. Each juror will make their decisions completely independently. Ultimately, the awards will go to those works where the jury’s point-based scores intersect.

Which creative moments are we celebrating?

• The Boldest Intersection Award (Award of the Chairman of the Bratislava Self-Governing Region) – for daringly pushing past genre boundaries.
• The Creative Disobedience Award – for courageously breaking all the rules.
• The Most Vibrant Inanimate Object Award – for the puppet, object, material or prop that stole the show, and the human artist who brought it to life.
• The Gravity Award – for the most daring work with body, space, puppet or object.
• The Goosebumps Award – for an exceptionally powerful, unforgettable audience experience.

At the end of the festival it will be time for the Juror’s Special Choice Award. Here, no rules apply — each juror can honour anyone for anything, across both the main and side programmes. It could go to an individual, a piece of work, a fresh idea, a nuanced detail or an unexpected spark that captivated, moved or brought joy to the juror during the festival.

Since every member of the secret jury will hand out their own personal award, there will be quite a few of them. Exactly how many? We’re keeping that under wraps. The award ceremony will remain a delightful little festival adventure right up to the very last moment.