The playwright Jeton Neziraj has a history of tackling difficult topics. His most recent play Negotiating Peace is testament to this. The play draws on two texts – To End a War, the memoir of the American diplomat Richard Holbrooke, which documents his central role in bringing together the Dayton Agreement, and The General of the Dead Army (Gjenerali i ushtrisë së vdekur), the 1963 novel of the Albanian writer Ismail Kadare – to explore the topic of peace making. It asks the question: what does it mean to make peace? Who are the people charged with negotiating the future of their countries? What compromises must be made to end a war? It is obviously a very resonant topic both in the region and beyond, with Russia’s war with Ukraine and the current, horrific Israeli-Hamas conflict. How will these wars end? How will peace be achieved and what will that peace look like.