The book A model of functioning of the Bulgarian theatre in the period between 1944 to 1989 written by Rumyana Nikolova and published by  P. Venedikov Publishing House in 2020 has been awarded an Ikar 2021 award for a critical text by the Guild of theatre makers, critics and dramaturges at the Union of Artists in Bulgaria.

The writer studies theatre in Bulgaria during the communist period. The communist party performs a total transformation to all spheres of social life. In theatre the aim is to subdue it to the communist ideology and its advice-giving policies. This main goal dominates repertoire choices, new Bulgarian drama as well as the ultimate performance.

The main characteristics of the Bulgarian theatre model were introduced by 1956. During the period between 1948 and 1956, the original repertoires were replaced, the manipulated upbringing of ideologically apt new Bulgarian drama, the introduction of socialist realism and the adapted for the communist goals system of Stanislavsky. During the same period the theatre network was expanded and the centralized management of culture and theatre, in particular, reached its climax. The Bulgarian theatre then functions in a completely repertoire model.