Artists and cultural institutions across the world are faced with increasing political pressure or have already been subjected to repressive measures. The Vienna Festival (Wiener Festwochen) | Free Republic of Vienna raises awareness about this with debates, open letters and performative interventions within the RESISTANCE NOW! campaign, calling for a European law for the protection of the freedom of the arts together with numerous partners. We will discuss censorship and resistance, art, democracy and the freedom of opinion with artists featured in this year’s Festival programme who are themselves affected and a representative of the Artistic Freedom Initiative:
Andreja Kargačin (Serbia) is a theatre maker and activist. Her play DORA or Who’s Going To Stitch the Vests is based on the Serbian student protests and the real-life experiences of two friends of whom one is now living in exile. The play was supposed to be premiered in November 2025 at BITEF Festival, Serbia’s largest international theatre festival. However, the politically appointed board censored the intended programme. In response, the artistic directors resigned and the festival was cancelled. A guerilla version of the festival eventually took place in December with the support of RESISTANCE NOW!
Agnietė Lisičkinaitė (Lithuania) and Igor Shugaleev (Belarus/Poland) are both known for their politically outspoken works in which they tackle protest culture and the effects of political regimes. CLAP & SLAP is the two choreographers’ first collaboration. Igor Shugaleev supported the protests in Belarus. Faced with looming arrest (among other reasons now also for CLAP & SLAP), he left the country. Agnietė Lisičkinaitė is actively involved in the current protests in Lithuania against a new law that would curtail freedom of the press and therefore the freedom of opinion. It is the largest protest movement since Lithuania’s independence.
Jennifer Laourou is Officer of Global Policy at the Artistic Freedom Initiative. Together with its Geneva-based sister organization, Initiative pour la Liberté Artistique, AFI facilitates pro bono immigration representation and resettlement assistance for international artists who are persecuted or censored. Beyond that, AFI conducts evidence-based research and issues reports about how laws, regulations and practices limit the freedom of artistic expression across the globe. These analyses reveal that rather than being individual cases, these are systematic attacks on art and culture. AFI is involved in drafting the European Artistic Freedom Act and participates in RESISTANCE NOW TOGETHER!
Judith Staudinger (moderator) is the Head of Communications at the Vienna Festival (Wiener Festwochen | Free Republic of Vienna and RESISTANCE NOW! campaign director.
