The festival is organized as a mutual project with the International Institute of Mediterranean Theatre ? Madrid, and has annual issues ever since 1997. Leading Bulgarian theatres play their current season performances, and all the performances are united by some common topic. So far theatres from Greece, Romania, Macedonia, Ukraine, Spain, England, and many other countries have participated in that festival. The great Bulgarian actor and theatrical students? tutor Prof. Stefan Danailov is artistic director of the festival. The spectacles are performed on the stages of the Plovdiv Drama Theatre, the City Culture Hall and the Ancient Theatre. In 2002, for the first time, a new form was experimented ? the so-called ?Street theatre? (consisting of sketch and grotesque performances on open stages). The organizers of this festival are the Plovdiv Municipality, Bulgarian National TV, Ministry of Culture, the National Theatrical Centre and the Plovdiv Drama Theatre.This year Plovdiv will be hosting 20 ?hit? spectacles, gathered under the motto ?The Best of the Best from Bulgarian Theatre?. The general sponsor this year is ?Rosa Impex?Ltd, represented by its owner Eng.Dimitar Georgiev. The rest of the sponsors are KCM JSC, Dimex Holding, Ondilin, Vitosha Insurance Agency, Leipzig Hotel, Plovdiv Municipality and the National Theatrical Centre at the Ministry of Culture. The festival opens on September 11th, on the Ancient Theatre scene, with the musicale ?The Cuckoo?, a performance of the National Theatre ?Ivan Vazov?. The closing will be on Sept.21st, on the stage of the Plovdiv Drama Theatre, with the performance of ?Romeo and Juliet? by the Plovdiv Theatre actors. Two more National Theatre performances will be presented at this year?s festival: ?Kimono?, an author?s performance of Rositsa Obreshkova, and ?Francesca? based on the play by Konstantin Iliev, director Margarita Mladenova, with the special performance of Tatyana Lolova. The Rhodope Drama Theatre will present two performances: ?The Bridget Jones? Diary? based on Helen Fielding?s book, director Gergana Dimitrova, and ?The Balkans are reading Yagosh Markovich?. The other theatres that will take part in the festival are the following: Small City theatre ?Behind the Canal?, The Prilep Theatre, The Moscow Theatre ?Luna?, The Army Theatre, The Rousse Theatre, The Bourgass Theatre, The Vratsa Theatre and the National Theatrical and Film Arts Academy.The tickets for all the performances will be released for sale in the beginning of September, and the prices will be 3, 4 and 5 leva. A ?live advertising? during the days of the festival will be performed by the actors of the Plovdiv youth theatre ?A?Part?.