Today, a media conference was held in the premises of JU Grad Theater on the occasion of the premiere of the play "Radovan III". The play is a co-production of JU Grad Theater and the National Theater from Sombor, based on a text by Dušan Kovačević and directed by Vito Taufer. This is the second play that Taufer is directing for the Grad Teatar festival.
"I did a co-production with the Macedonian Drama Theater for the first time in 1989, and 34 years have passed since then. I think Budva has changed a lot, I wouldn't recognize it. When I decided on that Kovačević text, I thought it was time to read it from today's perspective after 50 years. However, as we can see from the example of Budva, a lot has happened and changed. I adore Kovačević's work, I knew him better in the eighties through films, so I imagined this project in a cinematic way. We worked well in Sombor, here we have a small problem with noise and the environment, I can't say that it is not a problem. We are fighting and I think we will fight and make the show the way it should be", he said.
The media conference was led by Svetlana Ivanović, chief editor of the festival program, who said that "Radovan III" has existed in the cultural consciousness of the audience for so many years, and that this reading is in the original genre, and therefore not a comedy but a tragedy. Taufer agreed and added that one text can be read in different ways at any time and in any place.
"For the fiftieth anniversary, I think this is the right moment. I have absolutely no problem with the image people in this region have of that text. It is interesting to me that when I looked at the "Radovan III play" on Wikipedia, it says that it is a Serbian play between certain years, which was interesting and symptomatic for me because this is primarily a text written in 1973. It was only then that the play was created and that is a bit forgotten. That's why I decided, not only as a challenge, but because I think it's a phenomenal text that's perfectly written and we'll do it the way it's written. In terms of content and form, we play the text that Kovačević wrote 50 years ago."
Bojana Kovačević, manager of the National Theater in Sombor, pointed out that it is always nice to be in Budva and that she is glad that the cooperation with the Grad Teatar festival has continued.
"Somborsko pozorište has been cooperating with Budva City Theater practically since the festival was founded, and it is a successful cooperation year after year. When I looked a little, I realized that a good part of the ensemble grew together with the Grad Teatar festival. I was really glad when we agreed on this co-production because this is the first time, after 2007, that we work together on a show. We were especially pleased that Vito Taufer is directing the play because he is one of the most important directors in the region and does not direct so often in Serbia. I hope that the dice have been put together and that the audience will really be able to see something beautiful", said Kovačević.
Actor and artistic director of NP Sombor, Saša Torlaković, recalled many moments during his stay in the lounges of JU Grad Theater, which, he emphasized, were important to preserve.
"I saw here the poster for the play "Gossip" directed by Ljubiša Ristić, and that's actually my impression since I've been here. A few nights ago there was an "Evening dedicated to Nebojša Glogovac" and I think that one of the tasks of the City Theater should be to guard against forgetting, because we tend to quickly forget some important and significant things. So is this text, which was written 50 years ago. And that is, in a way, protection from oblivion. The story of Bogoboj Rucovic in the play "Gossip", about a wonderful actor, is the same preservation from oblivion. This festival also has the mission that, in addition to fostering new and younger writers, we all work together somehow to preserve the true heritage that has survived for so long. That is why it is interesting to read "Radovan III" today, somehow the social context is a little different. I think the piece and the lyrics hold up well in this day and age. We are especially glad that young actors from abroad are coming to us, wonderful colleagues from Montenegro, I think that this symbiosis of our actors and these wonderful young people resulted in a good show", said Torlaković.
The director of JU Grad Teatar reminded that the National Theater of Sombor was a guest at Grad Teatar for the first time in 1994, and that these are precisely the years of the younger generation of actors playing in this play.
"There was a generation of actors then, and with this collaboration, new generations are also forming. For me, it is important that a generation of audience has also come of age, which has also developed its taste and understanding of theater, largely through the performances of the National Theater from Sombor and through their productions and a couple of co-productions that have taken place so far. Several things we were looking forward to coincided in this project. One is the continuity of cooperation with NP Sombor, which is not there by chance, but that love between Budva and Sombor is present and has its own rules. On the other hand, there is our long-standing desire to collaborate with the director Vito Taufer, and we have discussed several times which texts could be worked on. All of that together in this trinity between the director and our two co-producers has somehow come together in one play that we will watch together, I'm sure, to the satisfaction of the audience. When we announced that the text "Radovan III" would be produced, the first association of a wider audience was the association with the famous cast that participated in that play. But when you ask them what that text is about, few know how to answer and what the essence of that text is. We are honored that the writer Dušan Kovačević will be with us these days, who will talk about exactly that. There are dramatic texts that are excellent in themselves, that come to life in one project and should not be blocked. If that were the case, then no one would play "Hamlet" or any other significant dramatic text again. In that sense, this project is very important", emphasized Lubarda Marojević.
Ninoslav Đorđević, who plays the main character in the play "Radovan III", spoke about the challenges he faced while preparing for this role.
"People often ask me if I have stage fright and I tell them that I don't have any, even though as a child I knew the whole play by heart and imitated Zoran Radmilović. There were the first couple of rehearsals when something came out as if you had learned it in childhood, that melody and the way the lines are said get into you. That was the biggest challenge, to get rid of those learned constructions, something that you are used to hearing and as it was once said by someone else. In any case, you have a dramatic text in front of you and a dramatic problem that you need to solve, so "Radovan III" is no different from any other theater task. What was refreshing was to sit down for that dramatic text and see that it didn't fall into the fact that it was written in some system that was in place so many years ago. It is somehow eerily acute, especially in that constant verbal and physical violence that takes place within that family and that community. That language of violence and, conditionally speaking, trampling over the dead in order to reach some status and power is a signature of this time. In this sense, "Radovan III" is extremely relevant."
This will be actress Marija Maša Labudović's first role in the co-production of Grada Teatr
"I'm playing in Budva for the first time, it's a beautiful city. The problem is the music and the atmosphere that exists in the Old Town, although it's wonderful that it exists, but I see it as a challenge. Some things had to be changed compared to what we were preparing in Sombor, that is absolutely essential and maybe it is better for this story of ours. I play Radovan's daughter, who has been in a different state for five years, and she is perhaps the only victim of that system, a dysfunctional family that is full of violence, who is a victim of her partners, parents, and sister. She is a puppet in that whole story and has no self of her own. She would like to have it, but she doesn't know about better and longer. She is trained to it and is obedient, at least she should be. I wouldn't talk about that cult show at all, I remember it through CDs and videos on YouTube. When I read the text for the first time, I had to go back to the beginning, the text is about many things, it talks about many problems, it is engaging. It was interesting, inspiring and I am proud of my team, which despite the problems has strength and will, we are really excited. I think it's finally time for the audience to see us and I hope this show has a long life."
Actor Pavle Popović thanked the director of Grada Teatr for once again giving him the opportunity and trusting him to work with wonderful colleagues and the director.
"What Milena Lubarda Marojević is doing is very important for us young actors, because you see what the situation has been like in recent years, we are normally in a deficit with stages, theaters and festivals. At the moment, the scene in Buća is being shut down, it happened similarly here with the scene at the Citadel. Kudos to you for finding the strength, enthusiasm and energy to bring the festival to the stage between churches, which is not easy at all. Some would say that it is foolish to place a theater on that plateau, given the heavy traffic and the nearby cafes. I want to congratulate you on your great effort and persistence, it is very important for us that we have the opportunity to play at this festival and cooperate with such colleagues. As for the play itself, it was wonderful to work with everyone, it's very important for us to share experiences and that's the only way we can grow as actors. That's how we broaden our horizons, see other theaters and ensembles."
Budva's Lazar Nikolić, like his colleague, plays for the first time in a co-production of Grada Teatr.
"As someone who was born in Budva and who as a child watched plays from those walls and smuggled in, enjoyed that magic, I always wanted to stand on those boards. Especially when I entered the Academy. So I would also like to thank the director and the entire Grado Theater because my wish came true. I would like to thank the Sombor Theater and the entire team because they really accepted us as their own children, from the porter to the manager. We really didn't lack for anything. I think we did a good job in this play. As for the context itself and the message we think we will convey to the audience, the text deals with important topics, starting with the family and the status of women in today's society. We live in a moment when it seems to me that violence is very present and it is the right moment to show something like this to the public. I don't think there will be so much laughter as there will be reactions and people wondering where we live, how we live and how much empathy and attitude towards people has been lost. We ignore the people next to us, and we only care about our goal, capital and what we will eat, drink and what car we will drive tomorrow. Instead of it being important to us if someone next to us is fine. When was the last time we honestly asked someone how they were doing, without it being in a parade."
The Budva premiere is scheduled for August 15 on the stage between the churches starting at 21 p.m., and the reprise performances are on the festival program on August 16, 17 and 18.
The premiere at the Sombor National Theater will be held on September 30. The play's dramaturgy is written by Vesna Radovanović, Lazar Bodroža is in charge of scenography, Biljana Grgur is in charge of costume design. The original music for the play was composed by the brothers Robert Pešut Manjifiko and Aleksanda Pešut Shatz. The proofreader is Dr. Dejan Sredojević. The play features Ninoslav Đorđević (Radovan III), Biljana Keskenović (Romanian), Marija Maša Labudović (Georgina), Danica Grubački (Katica), Srđan Aleksić (Stanislav), Nemanja Bakić (Jelence), Lazar Nikolić (Kelner), Pavle Popović ( Vasilije) and Dejan Pletikosić, Vladimir Broćilović, Igor Pekanović, Dejan Vuković, Andrej Todorović (Vilotići). The inspector is Zoran Vučković, and the prompter is Ninoslav Vranić.
Bonus video:
