Arnisa Halili

EUROPEANIZATION AND (DE)POLITICIZATION AT THE NATIONAL THEATER IN TIRANA, ALBANIA

On May 17, 2020, the Albanian government decreed the demolition of the National Theater in Tirana, despite civic protest and its nomination in the “7 Most Endangered Heritage Sites“ program by Europa Nostra. At the site of the National Theater, the Danish architect Bjarke Ingels is supposed to build a new National Theater to improve the city’s “modern” and “European” image. Strong protests have accompanied the proposal between 2018-2020, mainly led by the Alliance for the Protection of the Theater. 

For many, the National Theater represented more than just a cultural center. The futuristic-style building was constructed during the Italian occupation by architect Giulio Bertè between 1938 and 1939, and its construction technique was considered innovative at the time. It was representative of the cradle of Albania’s cultural institutions, and the struggle to preserve the National Theater was considered a glimmer of hope for democracy in the country. The building was part of the central monumental axis of Tirana, also representing a first wave of “Europeanization“ in terms of architecture and urban development. 

Research on the National Theater has primarily focused on local and national levels, neglecting a broader European dimension. I argue that the discussion on whether the National Theater should be preserved or demolished has been influenced by conflicting ideas of “Europe”. Drawing on my empirical research between 2022-2025 and based on Fiona Adamson’s Diaspora (2018) and Vjosa Muslius’s Europeanization (2021) approaches, I argue that “Europeanization“ has influenced the recent (De)Politicization of the National Theater. I conclude that contemporary Authoritarian Urbanism in Tirana is characterized by Europe-shaping and Europe-generating practices, as exemplified by the case of the National Theater. 

Adamson, F. B. (2018): Sending States and the Making of Intra-Diasporic Politics: Turkey and Its Diaspora(s), in: International Migration Review, (53/1), S. 210-236. 

Musliu, V. (2021): Europeanization and statebuilding as everyday practices: Performing Europe in the western Balkans. Routledge.

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PRESENTATIONS, WORKSHOPS AND OTHER ACTIVITIES (SELECTION)

Halili, A. (2025, September 22–25): Narrating Futures at the National Theater in Tirana, Albania. Presentation at the 11th CATference – Cities after Transition, International Urban Geographies of Post-Communist States Conference, Tirana, Albania.

Co-organization of the 8th Annual Conference of the DFG-Graduiertenkolleg 2227 “Identität und Erbe” on Bodies in, as, of, with, and ‘Identity and Heritage’, Berlin, Germany.

Halili, A. (2024, November 7–8): Presence and Absence of Bodies in the Negotiation of the National Theater in Tirana, Albania. Presentation at the 8th Annual Conference Bodies in, as, of, with, and ‘Identity and Heritage’, Berlin, Germany.

Co-organization of the Annual Conference of the Institut für Europäische Urbanistik: Authoritarian Urbanism: Contemporary Manifestations, Global Entanglements and Contestation, Bauhaus-Universität Weimar, Weimar, Germany.

Halili, A. (2023, November 9–11): The Role of ‘the Diaspora’ in Contemporary Authoritarian Urbanism in Tirana. Presentation at the Annual Conference of the Institut für Europäische Urbanistik: Authoritarian Urbanism: Contemporary Manifestations, Global Entanglements and Contestation, Bauhaus-Universität Weimar, Weimar, Germany.

Halili, A. (2023, July 12–15): Targeting Alternative Care-Infrastructure in Tirana. Presentation at the VI CHAM International Conference: Heritage for a Common Future, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal.

Vogl, J., Zenker, O., & Halili, A. (2023, July 3–5): “Heritage” in Times of Multiple Crises. Ad-hoc group organized within the framework of the ÖGS Congress Kritische Zeiten, Vienna, Austria.

Halili, A. (2023, March 22–24): Research in Politicized Contexts: The Destruction of the National Theater in Tirana. Presentation within the IfL Forschungswerkstatt #8: Spatially Related Research Practice in Challenging Environments: Authoritarianism, Conflicts and War, Leipzig, Germany.

Workshop (2023, January): “Responsible Field Access” for fellows of the DFG-Graduiertenkolleg “Identity and Heritage”.

PUBLICATIONS (SELECTION)

Cornejo Presbítero, M., Halili, A., Höhne, W., Juutistenaho, O., Piela, B., Sellmann, A. & Wegewitz, M. I. (Hrsg.): Bodies in, as, of, with, and Identity and Heritage, (Bd. 7) Schriftenreihe des DFG-Graduiertenkollegs »Identität und Erbe«, Bauhaus- Universitätsverlag, Weimar. [Geplante Veröffentlichung September 2025].

Halili, A. (2025): Präsenz und Abwesenheit von Körpern in der Aushandlung des Nationaltheaters in Tirana, Albanien. In W. Höhne, A. Halili, O. Juutistenaho, B. Piela, M. C. Presbítero, A. Sellmann, & M. I. Wegewitz (Hrsg.), Bodies in, als, von, mit, und ‚Identität und Erbe‘ (Bd. 7). Schriftenreihe des DFG-Graduiertenkollegs »Identität und Erbe«, Bauhaus- Universitätsverlag, Weimar. [Geplante Veröffentlichung September 2025].

Halili, A., & Wegewitz, M. I. (2025): »Vieles, was in den 1990er und Nullerjahren geschehen ist, bleibt schwer greifbar – aber der Körper erinnert sich.«: In W. Höhne, A. Halili, O. Juutistenaho, B. Piela, M. C. Presbítero, A. Sellmann, & M. I. Wegewitz (Hrsg.), Bodies in, als, von, mit, und ‚Identität und Erbe‘ (Bd. 7). Schriftenreihe des DFG-Graduiertenkollegs »Identität und Erbe«, Bauhaus- Universitätsverlag, Weimar.  [Geplante Veröffentlichung September 2025].

Halili, A. (2025): »Gjithçka në Zvicër mund të jetë Monument për punëtoret dhe punëtorët sezonalë«/ »Everything in Switzerland can be a monument for the seasonal workers«: In AG Denkmalschutzjahr 2025 des ICOMOS Suisse & Lehrstuhl für Konstruktionserbe und Denkmalpflege der ETH Zürich (Hrsg.), A future for whose past? Das Erbe von Minderheiten, Randgruppen und Menschen ohne Lobby (1. Aufl.). Hier und Jetzt.

Halili, A. (2021): Handlungspotenzial von (Anschlags-)Städten im Umgang mit Rechtsterrorismus. In Eckardt, F. & Bouguerra, H. M. (Hrsg.): Stadt und Rassismus: Analysen und Perspektiven für eine antirassistische Urbanität. 1. Auflage. Münster: Unrast.