XXX Days of Antun Šoljan in Rovinj-Rovigno: a two-day event dedicated to literature, its changes, and audiences of all generations
Rovinj-Rovigno will on Friday, April 24, 2026, and Saturday, April 25, 2026, host the XXX Days of Antun Šoljan, a literary and cultural event that for decades has been bringing together authors, scholars, theatre and music artists, and an audience that does not experience literature as a closed circle, but as a living public topic. The program takes place at several locations in the city – at the City Library “Matija Vlačić Ilirik”, at the Library of the Zvane Črnje Secondary School, at the MMC, and at the “Antonio Gandusio” Theatre – and brings content ranging from a children’s play and workshop, through a presentation of the work of Rovinj high school students, to a literary-scholarly colloquium and an evening concert. The organizers are the People’s Open University of the City of Rovinj-Rovigno and the Croatian Writers’ Society, with the support of the Ministry of Culture and Media of the Republic of Croatia, the Istrian County, and the City of Rovinj-Rovigno. For visitors coming from other places, it is practical to check in time
accommodation in Rovinj during the event, because the program is spread throughout the day and across several venues.
The event bears the name of Antun Šoljan, one of the most important Croatian writers of the second half of the 20th century, and this year’s program framework further emphasizes a question that in recent years has been posed ever more loudly both in academic circles and in the cultural public: what does the “end of literature” mean in a time of accelerated media and social change. The theme of the colloquium, “The End of Literature – Aspects of Change”, brings together a series of presentations ranging from fundamental questions of the meaning and purpose of literature to an analysis of its place on social networks and the relationship between poetry and contemporary technologies. Precisely that breadth – from children and school to scholarly and artistic dialogue – is one of the recognizable values of the Days of Antun Šoljan, which in practice show that literature is not an isolated “genre for the initiated”, but a space for conversation about society, language, and culture.
Rovinj as a stage for literature: multiple locations, one theme, different audiences
In the two-day schedule, locations are not mere logistics but part of the concept. The city library and the school library point to a reading base built from the earliest age and continued through education, while the MMC and the theatre open space to performative and musical forms. Such a distribution of content is especially important in a city that already has a strong cultural identity and an audience accustomed to festival dynamics, but also one in which guests must “read” the program through the city route. Therefore it is useful to link planning the visit with practical details – for example, checking
accommodation near the venues, so that the morning programs and evening events can be reached without rushing.
For the organizers, it is important that the event be open both to the local community and to guests, and the program is composed so that in the same day one can follow several types of content: educational, artistic, and scholarly. Thus the Days of Antun Šoljan take the form of an urban cultural “mosaic”, in which the audience does not have to choose between strictly separated worlds, but can move from the library to the MMC, from discussion to performance, from lecture to concert.
Program on Friday, April 24, 2026: from a children’s workshop to a theatre conversation
Friday begins at 11:00 a.m. at the City Library “Matija Vlačić Ilirik” with a play and a workshop for elementary school children. The program is based on Šoljan’s story “Papuančeve papuče” from the book “Ovo i druga mora”, thereby directly linking the event to the author’s literary legacy, but in a format accessible to the youngest. Such an entry into the event is not a protocol gesture, but a clear message about the continuity of reading: literary tradition is not transmitted only through academic interpretations, but also through the experience of story, play, and creative work.
At 12:00 p.m. the program moves to the Library of the Zvane Črnje Secondary School, where a presentation is planned of the final work of the film workshop by Rovinj high school students on the theme “The End of Literature”. Thus the focus shifts from a children’s audience to an adolescent and high school perspective, which often experiences the theme personally and generationally: through changes in reading habits, the dominance of video and short formats, and the growing role of digital platforms. The workshop leaders are Eric Ušić, Michele Bulešić, Marino Morosin, and Teo Morosin, and the very fact that high school students interpret the theme of the event through film language further confirms that the “end of literature” is not necessarily disappearance, but a reshaping of media and habits.
The evening program at 7:00 p.m. at the MMC brings “Theatre of Boris Senker”, that is, a conversation with Boris Senker. Tomislav Brlek, Lada Čale Feldman, and Ivica Matičević talk with the author, while Petra Blašković performs songs. This format combines the theoretical and stage aspects, because Senker’s work is not limited to a single genre or a single role – the conversation with him is simultaneously a literary and a theatre event. For an audience coming from other cities, Friday is a day in which the program starts early and ends in the evening, so it is rational to check in advance
accommodation offers in Rovinj for visitors who want to stay for Saturday’s colloquium and concert as well.
Saturday, April 25, 2026: a protocol of remembrance and the central colloquium on the “end of literature”
Saturday morning begins at 9:30 a.m. with the laying of a wreath at the house of Antun Šoljan, thereby returning the event to its starting point: remembrance of the author and the link between place and literary identity. Such an act in cultural events has a dual function. On the one hand it emphasizes respect for the author and tradition, and on the other it provides a symbolic framework for the discussions that follow – because even the most abstract questions about the meaning of literature always return to concrete authors, works, and reading communities.
At 10:00 a.m. at the MMC the literary-scholarly colloquium “The End of Literature – Aspects of Change” begins, with Ivica Matičević in the role of moderator and with an introductory address also delivered by Matičević. The list of presentations shows an ambition to illuminate the topic from multiple angles: Antun Pavešković speaks on the question “What is literature for?”, Tomislav Brlek raises the problem of the purpose of literature, and Jasmina Vojvodić considers the “end of literature within literature itself”. Tvrtko Vuković deals with the “temptation of the philological task” and the problem of a return to philology, while Tea Rogić Musa opens the question of historical writing about literature as testimony of a “quiet dying”. Dubravka Crnojević Carić addresses the way literature “dwells” on social networks, and Lada Žigo Španić, through the title “The democratization of taste is tasteless”, enters the debate on changing criteria and cultural hierarchies.
The colloquium also includes presentations that connect domestic and European literary perspectives: Slaven Jurić addresses Ujević’s “Twilight of Poetry” in a broader context, Sven Kezele speaks about Josip Sever and the end of modernism, and Jakob Filić opens the question of the production and consumption of poetry “between social networks and artificial intelligence”. Pavle Bonča brings the motif of Istrian “anabases and anabioses”, Tihomir Glowatzky relies on the provocative idea that “those written off live longer”, and Magdalena Dyras presents the state of Polish literature today through writers, awards, and readers. The common denominator is not a single conclusion – because in such debates there often isn’t one – but mapping changes: from reading habits and media to institutions and the language of criticism. For those planning to follow the colloquium from start to finish, especially if coming from outside Istria, it makes sense to organize the visit with
accommodation near the MMC and the center of Rovinj, in order to avoid unnecessary logistics between the morning and evening program.
Presentation of editions of the DHK Small Library: essays, canon, and editorial work
Saturday’s program also includes a presentation of books published by the Small Library of the Croatian Writers’ Society. The books presented are “Writers and Theatre People” by Boris Senker (a collection of essays, 2025) and “The Manuscript of the World. Selected Poems” by S. S. Kranjčević (edited by Tomislav Brlek, 2025). Boris Senker, Tomislav Brlek, Antun Pavešković, and Ivica Matičević speak about the books. This segment of the event also highlights the publishing aspect of literary life: literature is not only an event on stage or a topic of debate, but also continuous work on the text, selection, editing, and interpretation. In that sense, the presentation of editions of the DHK Small Library fits into the broader theme of change, because it reminds us that the “canon” and literary memory are always reshaped through editorial decisions, scholarly approaches, and readers’ interests.
Evening highlight at the theatre: concert by Ernst Reijseger and Mario Forte
At 8:00 p.m. at the “Antonio Gandusio” Theatre, the concert “Ernst Reijseger & Mario Forte” takes place, featuring Ernst Reijseger on cello and Mario Forte on violin. According to announced information in public event notices, this is a program within the XXX Days of Antun Šoljan, and the concert is presented as a guest appearance by internationally recognized musicians and as one of the more attractive evening contents of the event. Part of the media announcements states that entry to the concert is free with mandatory reservation via the organizers’ system, which is important information for an audience planning to come, especially in a city where the number of visitors increases in April. Those intending to stay until the evening time slot, or to combine the concert with following the colloquium, should plan practical details in good time, including
accommodation for visitors near the theatre, so that the event can be experienced without time pressure.
It is significant for the event that the program ends precisely with a concert: thus the literary theme is translated into another artistic language, and the audience gets an opportunity for the “end of literature” not to be understood as closure, but as opening toward interdisciplinarity. In practice, such an ending often confirms that the cultural scene gains most when literature, scholarship, and music are not treated as separate sectors, but as forms of public communication that complement one another.
Organization, contact and patrons
The XXX Days of Antun Šoljan take place on April 24 and 25, 2026, at several city locations in Rovinj-Rovigno. The organizers are the People’s Open University of the City of Rovinj-Rovigno and the Croatian Writers’ Society. The organizers’ contact is listed via telephone +385 (0)52 830 300 and email info@pour.hr, and additional information and reservations, according to public event announcements, are available on the organizers’ official websites. The patrons are the Ministry of Culture and Media of the Republic of Croatia, the Istrian County, the City of Rovinj-Rovigno, and the Croatian Writers’ Society, which gives the event an institutional framework and confirms its cultural relevance in a broader context.
Sources:- People’s Open University of the City of Rovinj-Rovigno (POUR) – official announcement and program of the XXX Days of Antun Šoljan ( link )- Croatian Writers’ Society (DHK) – page about the event Days of Antun Šoljan ( link )- Rovinj Tourism (official tourist portal) – events calendar and description of the event ( link )- Glas Istre – announcement of the concert by Ernst Reijseger and Mario Forte as part of the XXX Days of Antun Šoljan ( link )- IstraIN – additional information about the concert program and the project “Fata Morgana” ( link )
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