Plovdiv Drama Theatre’s production “The Palaveevi Sisters”, based on Alek Popov’s eponymous novel, opened the 19^th Scene at Crossroads International Theater Festival under UBB patronage. The Plovdiv spectators proved once again they were real theatre art connoisseurs, welcoming the theatre’s premier performance and the first staging of the novel with much more than enthusiasm.

UBB in its turn handed an honorary statuette to the play‘s director, Elena Panayotova, for her creative interpretation and highly appreciated the theatrical reincarnations of Boryana Bratoeva, Mila Lyutskanova, Dobrin Dosev, Simeon Aleksiev, Venelin Metodiev, Elena Kabasakalova and the entire Plovdiv Drama Theater company.

“We are extremely glad of the opportunity to be a patron of this particular play. We are certain that the exquisite performance and the director’s one-of-a-kind approach will make the audience love “The Palaveevi Sisters” now not only as a novel, but as a play as well”, Ms. Anka Kostova, UBB’s PR and Sponsorship Manager, confided immediately after the performance. On behalf of the Bank, part of the festival’s sponsor community, she emphasized UBB’s content with the fact that through its initiatives in support of Bulgarian theatre, the Bank had the chance to attract new audiences to theater halls and assist for inclusion of some symbolic and new titles in the repertoire of the Bulgarian temples of Melpomene.

“The Palaveevi Sisters” premiere marked the beginning of the 19^th edition of   Scene at Crossroads Festival and was met with great interest, while giving the innovative director Elena Panayotova a chance to present her interpretation of the novel - an undertaking, in which she had been assisted not only by the actors, but also by the author of the eponymous novel Alek Popov and the director-scriptwriter Delyana Maneva - the creative team behind the hit movie “Mission London”. The audience’s high appraisal of the performance set the bar high for the entire programme of the Festival, traditionally held from September 10 until September 23. Some of the most successful productions of national and foreign theaters of the past year had found a place in the festival programme.

UBB backed the event as a part of its continuous effort to support Bulgarian culture and arts. In Y2015 this support found expression in the partnership with the well-established festivals Opera at the Park, March Music Days, Varna Summer Theater Festival, Apollonia Arts Festival and the assistance in the training of the students in NATFA’s Screen Arts Department.