As part of the Experience Sharing course, the seminar titled “The Turkish Cypriot Theatre Movement and the Nicosia Municipal Theatre” was held on 15 January 2026 at BA SIN03. Moderated by Sen. Ins. Şafak Ersözlü, the seminar featured theatre writer, director, and actor Yaşar Ersoy, who presented a historical overview of the Turkish Cypriot theatre movement within its social and political contexts.
The seminar opened with Ersoy marking 15 January as the birthday of Nazım Hikmet, highlighting Hikmet’s socially engaged artistic approach and linking it to the founding principles of the Nicosia Municipal Theatre. Throughout the session, Ersoy traced the development of theatre in Cyprus from the Ottoman period to the British colonial era and the post-1950 political transformations, emphasizing theatre’s role as a collective and public practice. He underlined that theatre cannot be separated from its historical conditions, noting that it functions as a space of social reflection and cultural resistance.
The second part of the seminar focused on the establishment of the Nicosia Municipal Theatre in 1980 and its guiding philosophy. Ersoy emphasized the importance of artistic autonomy and community engagement, stating that theatre exists through the interaction between performers and audiences. The seminar concluded with a Q&A session in which students discussed censorship, institutional theatre structures, and the relationship between art and politics.
