Brace for a European Literature night

Literature enthusiasts in the city can look forward to a speed date with authors from 10 European countries at the Instituto Cervantes on Friday.

The authors from Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Poland, Spain and Switzerland among others will be participating in the second edition of the 'Long Night of LiteratureS', an initiative supported by the European Union in collaboration with various embassies and cultural bodies.

"The number of organisations presenting the 'Long Night of LiteratureS' has gone up from 8 to 10 this year. This is a great validation of the format and the extraordinary cooperation between the participating European countries with the support of the European Union.

"The possibility to present readings professionally translated in the presence of the author and the translator is unique, both for the organisers and the individuals concerned," said Chandrika Grover Ralleigh, Director Pro Helvetia (the Swiss Arts Council).

The format of the event encourages the audience to listen to many authors through the course of the evening. Each author reads to an audience of about 12-15 people for 20 minutes. The group then moves to the next room to listen to another author. This concept allows the audience to have close interactions with the authors.

"This unique format enables audience 'literary degustation', enabling the audience to savour writings from across many countries. This is also an opportunity to present many European Literatures at a single venue and from a common platform," added Ralleigh.

Hungarian poet Roland Orcsik is excited about his first visit to India and his upcoming novel.

"This is my first visit to Delhi and for me, it's always inspiring to meet radically different cultures. I read a lot about India and curious to know their work," he said.

"I am also working on the final leg of my first novel. So the visit is crucial to me," said Orcsik.

Audience can also look forward to reading by French novelist and poet Makenzy Orcel from his work "L'Ombre animale" which creates a powerful chorus of love and hope.

Then there is award winning Italian writer Laila Wadia, whose works deal with issues like, migration, food and gender. While Line Hoven will be representing Germany, Markus Kirchhofer from Switzerland will read his works. The other writers include Vea Kaiser (Austria), Jean-Pierre Orban (Belgium)Johan Harstad (Norway), Jacek Dehnel (Poland) and Gabriela Ybarra from Spain.

The event will be held at Instituto Cervantes, 48 Hanuman Road, New Delhi on 23 September at 5.30 p.m.

--IANS

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