The ambition and idea of the Jubilee Festival Grad Teatr, to mark 25 years of its existence in a dignified way in all programs - drama, music, literature and art, has seen its real confirmation - on the Budva stages this summer, significant artists from the region of all generation, the most outstanding Montenegrin artists, as well as some great stars of the world art scene.
According to the words of Merin Smailagić, director of the Grad Theater, their performances were followed by a large audience, for most of the programs a higher ticket price was requested, and their quality is also proven by the media, which followed these artistic events with great attention. As Smailagić points out, this should indicate optimism for the future years of the Grad Theater.
"And this year's festival had the two most important qualities of previous festivals - despite the financial difficulties faced by most festivals in the region and in Europe today, Grad Theater did not give up its elitist concept, and did not compromise.
"Another quality of the festival, which we are also proud of, is openness towards the region, connection and cultural cooperation with everyone"
This, in these turbulent changes of the value system in general, did not have a negative impact on the different tourist offer that Budva has had in recent years. On the contrary, even with this selective artistic selection that we offer, year after year we have more and more audiences, especially younger ones, and the number of foreign tourists is also increasing.
Another quality of the festival, which we are also proud of, is openness towards the region, connection and cultural cooperation with everyone, regardless of political, national and some other maps, with only one condition, artistic quality."
Precisely because of these financial difficulties, many festivals face the question of what their future is, especially in relation to more commercial offers, which was one of the topics of the Round Table dedicated to the Grad Theater?
"If we talk about the financial relationship between the elite and the commercial, I can immediately cite the example of our two dance performances, co-productions - 'Divine Comedy', which premiered this summer, and 'Othello', which premiered at last year's festival, for which more tickets were requested, even though dance theater in these areas, unlike abroad, is not overly popular.
It turned out, however, that especially young people want to see these performances, as well as foreigners who spend their summer in Budva. Our other new co-productions and premieres this summer - 'Kanjoš Macedonović', 'Višnjik', 'Konte Zanović' and 'Grk Zorba', which as a musical is already a more commercial version of theater in itself, conditionally speaking, can show the same. .
"There is also the Poets' Square - the most serious, the most important, and the authors most valued by literary criticism, were the most interesting"
There was huge interest in some of the old, most successful plays of the Grad Theater, which we repeated. As proof that elitist art has its audience, this year's Music Program, which we did in co-production with the Music Academy in Cetinje, also shows.
World stars were presented there, such as violinist Vilhelmas Čepinskis, pianist Polina Osetinskaja, conductors Jean Reiss, Sergej Smbatio, and Montenegrin performers also performed with them. There were not enough seats for these concerts, chairs were brought.
There is also the Poets' Square - it was precisely the most serious, significant, and most valued authors from literary criticism who were the most interesting and gathered the largest audience."
Is that enough for the festival, which is valued in the region and on the international art scene as a cultural brand by which Montenegro is recognized today, to look forward to next year with optimism?
"This year's support we had from the Government of Montenegro, that is, the Ministry of Culture, the honorary patronage of the President of Montenegro Filip Vujanović, who opened the festival, the support of the Municipality of Budva, some sponsors, the people of Budva themselves, we are aware that it came partly because Grad Theater celebrated its 25th anniversary, and I believe it was also because its value was recognized here.
And although, for example, the Dubrovnik Summer Games, with which we are constantly compared, are longer-lived, two and a half decades of our festival's existence is by no means small.
Especially since in those years Grad Theater managed to become a true cultural representative of Montenegro, and to build such a history - the most famous artists from the world came here, whose arrival in Paris, or any other world metropolis, would be a cultural event.
A city theater is necessary for Budva to be a city
There is nothing in Montenegro that can boast such a biography in terms of culture. But, I'm afraid that here, somehow, we lightly pass over such values, lightly ignore the facts, and so it seems that more people from the outside understand the importance of the festival than we ourselves - many artists who have world names publicly say that it is an honor for them to be came to the City Theater precisely because they heard who was here.
This is what inspires optimism, although we often waste more time and energy on constant questioning than recognizing, cherishing, caring for and improving what is valuable that we already have.
I want to believe, like the people of Budva who consider the Grad Theater necessary for Budva to be a city in general, and not just a tourist destination, and all other citizens of Montenegro who are our regular audience, that the enormous value that the Grad Theater has achieved in these twenty-five years, determine his further destiny.
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