The book you are holding in your hands, the latest special issue, the fifth already, of RADAC’s Coup de Théâtre journal, is the written, printed, soft-bound memory of a key moment in the life of our wonderful society dedicated to studying contemporary Anglophone theatre, namely “Crossing Borders”, the international conference co-organised with MSH Paris-Nord, Plaine Commune and the universities of Avignon, Grenoble, Paris 13, Lille, Lyon 2 and Sorbonne University, on October 12th–13th 2018 for RADAC’s 40th birthday. During these two very intense days, researchers, translators, theatre-makers, publishers from a dozen European countries worked together on how Anglophone theatre circulates within Europe, raising important questions linked to the reception, translation and adaptation of specific works, but also to the patronage and funding of theatres and theatre professionals. It seemed to us that the voices and ideas of the plenary speakers, the contributors to the panels and the speakers at the round tables would reach more theatre aficionados if they could circulate after the conference. The talks were rewritten and edited in order to offer groundwork to more researchers and professionals and foster new collaborations between individuals and between countries. Let us hope that the book, just like the theme it covers, will cross borders and circulate throughout Europe so as to provide a step towards uniting scholars around the topic of contemporary Anglophone theatre.
What this book cannot really make apparent but what this foreword can report is that all the discussions during the conference happened in the most friendly of atmospheres, and that this atmosphere was entirely due to the hard work and warm hearts of Agathe Torti-Alcayaga (RADAC Treasurer) and Christine Kiehl (RADAC Vice-President), with the help of the RADAC board, three students working under Agathe’s supervision (Anita Balendran, Aiswaria Barjesh and Pauline Bocquillon) and a PhD student (Stéphanie Papa). In the months leading up to the conference, they did everything that was humanly possible to make sure that both the scientific excellence and the convivial atmosphere were sustained during the two days. And they succeeded. The new board members are determined to uphold the values both Agathe and Christine have promoted during their years on the RADAC board in particular friendship and respect across nations, values without which our research becomes meaningless. In that sense, there are no borders between Britain and Europe or between Europe and the United States. Thank you to Agathe, Christine and RADAC for creating a time and place where the Republic of Letters can exist. It is now up to us all to make it thrive.
