Special award winners and nominees for the Afife Theatre Awards announced

Speaking at a press conference held at Yapı Kredi Culture and Arts, Jury President Prof. Dr. Merih Tangün stated that they worked with a jury team of 33 people.

Expressing that for plays to enter the evaluation process, they must be performed for the first time in the season and at least 10 times in Istanbul, Tangün said, "This season, we divided our jury into subgroups, and each group watched an average of 26 plays. During this process, we exchanged ideas through monthly meetings. We also have a system with a technological infrastructure where we score the plays. No one can view each other's scores."

Pointing out that they evaluated a total of 196 plays, Tangün said, "The name of Afife Jale, who is a source of inspiration and courage for everyone dedicated to theatre, is kept alive through these awards. We are not only keeping her name alive, but we are also continuing the mission of Afife Jale."

'THERE ARE CONSTANTLY CHANGING PLAYS'

Yapı Kredi Afife Theatre Awards Executive Board Chairman Salih Başağa stated that they try to act very sensitively during the preparation processes of the program and noted the following:

"There is a 25-year effort behind this. As of the point we have reached in the process, we are conducting one of the most prestigious and reputable award processes in Turkish theatre. We have developed an analytical infrastructure with algorithms running in the background to ensure that the evaluation processes are carried out properly. There are constantly changing plays, scripts, and technologies. We aim to hold the award ceremony on June 11 in a manner worthy of this."

In the program, where Haldun Dormen serves as the artistic consultant, the award ceremony to be held at the Haliç Congress Center on June 11 will be hosted by Özge Borak and Mert Fırat.

In the program where the jury special awards were announced, Prof. Dr. Ayşegül Yüksel was deemed worthy of the "Muhsin Ertuğrul Special Award," Müge Oskay of the "Cevat Fehmi Başkut Special Award," Duru Tiyatro of the "Haldun Dormen Special Award," and Murat Ovalı of the "Yapı Kredi Special Award."

This year, the plays nominated for the "Most Successful Play of the Year" award are "39 and a Half Steps" by Tiyatroadam, "The Great Zarifi Apartment" by İstos Yapım, "Ugly" by Dolkun Production, "A Clockwork Orange" by Tatbikat Sahnesi, and "To Live or To Die" by Kocaeli City Theatres.

In the "Most Successful Director of the Year" category, Güray Dinçkol, İlham Yazar, İlyas Özçakır, Oğuz Utku Güneş, and Şahika Tekand; in the "Most Successful Actress of the Year" category, Gülçin Kültür Şahin, Nihan Doğa, Pelin Abay, Senan Kara, and Zuhal Olcay; and in the "Most Successful Actor of the Year" category, Berk Yaygın, Can Atak, Onur Berk Arslanoğlu, Onur Ünsal, and Yiğit Sertdemir will compete.