Pavol Liska and Kelly Cooper, representing the United States for the first time at the Salzburg Festival, won the MONTBLANC YOUNG DIRECTORS PROJECT for best piece of direction for their version of the classic Romeo and Juliet by the Nature Theater of Oklahoma. Pavol and Kelly was presented with €10,000 and the Montblanc Max Reinhardt fountain-pen, which was especially designed for this project.
Since 2002, Montblanc has been the sole sponsor of the MONTBLANC YOUNG DIRECTORS PROJECT, an innovative competition for young, international theatre directors and their ensembles that has become an integral part of the Salzburg Festival in Austria. By participating in this project, young international directors have the unique opportunity of showcasing themselves to the international press.
In addition to financing the entire project, Montblanc donates every year part of the revenue from the sale of the Salzburg Special Edition "Hommage á Max Reinhardt." This has made it possible to put on more productions then in the previous years and has allowed an American, Scandinavian and Asian companies to participate for the first time in 2008.
"The YOUNG DIRECTORS PROJECT makes it possible – independently of the market – to promote artists and companies who would otherwise go unrecognized. They can work freely and independently – without any artistic interference!" says Theatre Director Thomas Oberender.
