The programme
Each year the festival directors invite from around the world 25 to 30 individuals and companies whose creations are marked by formal independence, innovative character and artistic ambition. Part of the budget is reserved for festival-owned productions or co-productions. Precedence is given to projects that reflect a connection to the festival. Outstanding artistic personalities and new off-theatre talents whose unusual works are making ripples in the world of international theatre, dance and performance mark the history of the Zuercher Theater Spektakel. The programmes feature various forms of artistic expression. They have included politically engaged companies such as the Market Theatre and the Handspring Puppet Company from Johannesburg, the subversive hotheads of La Fura dels Baus from Barcelona, the video theatre pioneers of the Wooster Group from New York as well as state of the art directors Peter Brook, Robert Lepage and Christoph Marthaler. The festival has presented Israel’s Akko Theater Zentrum, the Japanese choreographer Saburo Teshigawara, Les Ballets C. de la B. from Belgium, Socìetas Raffaello Sanzio from Italy and the greatly gifted directors Eimuntas Nekrosius, Oskaras Korsunovas and Alvis Hermanis from Eastern Europe. Most recently it has been productions on the cutting edge of various artistic art forms – new music, theatre, opera, video, dance and performance – which have been the highlights of the programme: New forms of music theatre such as presented by Guy Cassiers and Wayn Traub from Belgium, Liza Lim and the Elision Contemporary Music Ensemble from Australia and Ong Ken Seng from Singapore. In addition, the video, performance and fine arts creations of Marina Abramovic, Richard Forman, Michael Laub, Guillermo Gomez-Peña, Matthew Barney and the Australian Museum of Modern Oddities have demonstrated the versatility of the contemporary arts scene.

The patronage prize
Since 1986 the Zürcher Kantonalbank has awarded the ZKB-Patronage Prize of CHF 30,000 and the ZKB-Acknowledment Prize of CHF 5,000 to artists and companies featured at the festival. Each year the festival board nominates five productions which are judged by a panel of experts. Prizes are awarded on the Saturday preceding the end of the festival. Past prizewinners include German director Stephan Pucher (1997), Swiss theatre company 400asa (2000), English choreographer Sarah Michelson (2002), The Living Dance Studio from the People’s Republic of China (2004) or Richard Maxwell & The New York City Players from the USA (2005).

The festival directors
Since 1 November 2007 Sandro Lunin is in charge of the artistic direction. Together with Cornelia Howald and Werner Hegglin he directs the festival.

The promoters
The Zürcher Theater Spektakel is an event of the City of Zurich and is generously funded by Tages-Anzeiger, Zuercher Kantonalbank and Swiss Re.