When Kris Imbrigotta and I became co-editors of Communications in 2016, the journal not only got new editors, it also moved from a print newsletter to an online format. This brought with it a set of challenges (neither one of us was very familiar with web design, html, or the quirks of WordPress) but also opportunities (we could reach broader audiences more quickly, and could now seamlessly include photographs and video).

Jack Davis

What has made E-CIBS especially gratifying to edit over the last eight years are the scope and variety of contributions testifying to the continued global resonance of Brecht’s work. We have published not only theater reviews and conference papers, but also poetry, archival video, historical documents and personal reflections. The most rewarding issues of the journal to edit were those that brought me into contact with both older and younger generations, from the most prominent Brecht scholars in the world to undergraduates just getting their first taste of Brechtian theater.

During this time, Kris and I also had the bittersweet task of curating tribute pages dedicated to scholars and actors who have passed away, including Helen Fehervary, Hans-Thies Lehmann, Jamie Lyon, Jost Hermand, Jürgen Holtz, Eric Bentley and Carl Weber. I believe that E-CIBS plays an important role in preserving the memory of these scholars and artists for the coming generations, and I’m happy to have helped in that task.

I’m excited about the new look and design that the new co-editors Joerg Esleben and Anthony Squiers have brought to the page, as well as their plans to broaden E-CIBS’s reach even more by soliciting contributions in Spanish and French. I would like to thank the two of them for taking on this task, and for making the transition very smooth! I’d also like to thank the current and former presidents of the International Brecht Society, Markus Wessendorf and Stephen Brockmann, for their support, as well as Marc Silberman, who often served as an unofficial co-editor behind the scenes. Finally, my two student assistants from Truman State University, Karis Chapman and Greg Sheets, were a tremendous help to me, especially in the early days of my tenure as co-editor.