The critically acclaimed, Edinburgh Fringe hit The Brief Life & Mysterious Death of Boris III, King of Bulgaria is transferring to Arcola Theatre, London, this autumn. Following a hugely successful sell-out run at Edinburgh Festival Fringe this August, this darkly comic retelling of the life of Bulgarian King Boris III combines historical theatre and folk music with a modern revisionist twist.
Winner of the Origins Award for Outstanding New Work at VAULT Festival 2020 and Second Finalists for 2023’s Popcorn Writing Award, Out of the Forest Theatre, in association with Something for the Weekend, present their energetic production that astonished and intrigued Fringe audiences this summer. The Brief Life & Mysterious Death of Boris III, King of Bulgaria explores the suspicious circumstances of the King of Bulgaria’s demise, how nearly 50,000 Jewish people were saved from deportation and death during WWII, and how the world forgot all about it. The ensemble performs Bulgarian and Jewish folk tunes while sharing this unique untold but true tale from 20th century European history.
2023 marks 80 years since the events of The Brief Life & Mysterious Death of Boris III, King of Bulgaria; the anniversary of the King’s death coincided with the end of the festival and was commemorated with a reception with Boris III’s grandson, HRH Prince Kyril. This play is a call to arms that there is power in being good, and ordinary people can do extraordinary things. Even the smallest David can become a Goliath.
Writers Sasha Wilson and Joseph Cullen comment, So far over 4,000 people have seen our telling of the Eastern European David standing up to the Goliath of Hitler’s Third Reich. We have been delighted by the response from critics and industry, and even more so by the feedback from Bulgarian and Jewish audience members. We are thrilled to be bringing this story to the Arcola Theatre. This is a story worth sharing, about people worth talking about, from a period of history we all think we know so well.
The Brief Life & Mysterious Death of Boris III, King of Bulgaria is at Arcola Theatre Tuesday 26th September – Saturday 21st October 2023.
