Praksa Bitefa je i da prvom predstavom napravi sponu između prošlogodišnjeg i aktuelnog programa It is also a Bitef practise to use the first play to create a link between the previous year’s programme and the current one
and troupes will also perform at the Centre for Cultural Decontamination (CZKD), the Faculty of Medicine and the Historical Museum of Serbia. The BITEF team didn’t reach such a decision without good rea- son. Specifically, some of the plays themselves seek specific venues that will enable them to better bond with the subject matter they address. One such play is Dr. Auslender (Made for Germany), which is seemingly tailor- made for one of the amphitheatres of the Faculty of Medicine; anoth- er is Gardien Party, which is always presented in museums for guest per- formances by authors Valérie Mré- jen and Mohamed El Khatib. The Port of Belgrade, on the oth- er hand, “contributes to the democ- ratisation of culture effect”, which would mean that utilising it for the- atrical purposes brings contemporary art closer to the people. At the same time, urban complexes become plat- forms for creative exchange, as is the case with industrial zones in many of the world’s major cities. It is also a Bitef practise to use the first play to create a link between the previous year’s programme and the current one, which is called The Prologue. That function this time be- longs to German play (Not) the End of the World. “This work by one of the world’s leading directors, Katie
56 TH BITEF We, the heroes of our own labour
BITEF runs from 23 rd September to 2 nd October, when Belgrade will once again shine on the map of world theatre, and the audience will long recount their experiences
LATE SEPTEMBER BRINGS US THE BELGRADE INTER NATIONAL THEATRE Festival (BITEF), a festive holiday time for all serious theatre lovers. And this year’s edition will hark back to its glo- rious beginning, in 1967, when the first edition blazed a trail through the most exciting regions of world theatre, bringing the most renowned names from all over the world to the Serbian capital. BITEF’s mission isn’t merely ar- tistic. It also strives to use the lan- guage of theatre to address crucial social topics. And this year it’s the turn of labour rights to be exam- ined; rights that are “threatened by the appetites of capitalism, but al- so additionally – by the coronavirus pandemic and the war in Ukraine,” explains BITEF Artistic Director Ivan Medenica.
The slogan of the 56 th edition, “We, the Heroes of Our Own La- bour”, may seem somewhat comi- cal to younger generations who have a critical bias against the period of so- cialist Yugoslavia when the Pesma o radu [Song of Labour] – of which this slogan is a verse – first emerged. How- ever, the plays will address serious issues, from the precariat to forced retraining and redundancies as a re- sult of economic restructuring. The festival’s programme will include the staging of nine theatre works from Germany, Belgium, Mexico, France, Serbia, Slovenia and the UK. BITEF is also specific in the di- verse venues that host its perfor- mances. Included in the mix this year are the National Theatre, the Yugoslav Drama Theatre and the Bitef Theatre, when it comes to classical theatre houses. However, ensembles
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