The pleiade of Montenegrin actors building their careers in Belgrade was joined by Jovana Todorović from Budva, a graduate of acting at the Academy of Fine Arts and Multimedia there in the class of professor Vida Ognjenović. Jovana is now playing in the plays "Visa" and "Međujire" by Vida Ognjenović, and "Cyanide at Five" by Božidar Đurović, which was also performed in Montenegro this summer. The premieres of these plays were at the National Theatre, they are in the repertoire of the new theater "Portal", and Jovana also had roles in the film "Autumn Samurai" and the video "Diploma" of the SARS group.
When asked by "Vijesti" how difficult it is to get a role today, Todorović says that theaters are somehow left to their own devices, "everything is always more important to people in power than art", and in such a situation it is very difficult to get roles - there are many actors , and few projects.
"Only work and great work can pay off, and not always. Today, young actors are forced to engage in production, create independent projects and thus show society that there are smarter things than reality shows and boring political debates. I do not lose hope that the people will turn to true values, I believe that this is only a passing phase. We actors are here to fight for art, for the theater, and I'm sure we'll win that battle, it's hard and bloody, but winnable. Acting is definitely my vocation, I feel good there, I manage well and most importantly, I never stop being a child", says Todorović.
She entered the world of acting in the second grade of primary school in the drama section, where she remained in high school in Budva. As part of the section, she went to festivals with her friends whom she proudly says have also finished acting and are very successful - Petar Strugar and Davor Perunović. However, growing up with the Grad Theater was decisive for them to choose this calling.
"As a high school student, I worked seasonally at Gradu Teatr and had the opportunity to watch all the programs of the festival at that time. I love the theater above all else and it is a love that is eternal, pure and unbreakable, and as a child I was fascinated by the actors, the emotions they conveyed to me, the organization and the dramatic texts themselves. I believe that I remember the details of some plays better than the people who made them, from 'Kokoška' by Jagoš Marković in 1999 and the masterful roles of Voja Brajović and Seka Sablić, via "Jegor's Road" based on the text and directed by Vida Ognjenović from 2000, when I was mesmerized by Svetozar Cvetković, Svetlana Bojković, Petar Kralj, Nada Šargin... Grad Teatar is a serious festival with a long tradition that we should preserve to give the younger generations the same feeling as me, and I also hope that Budva will get a cultural center with a scene in the city center", says Jovana.
Apart from acting, Jovana is also the selector and founder of the festival "Evenings of young artists and creators", which has been held in Petrovac for three years. This summer, she was a guest of various festivals and literary evenings - Grad Teatar, Kralj Nikola's Castle, Book Festival in Herceg Novi, Sterija Theater, Novi Sad Cultural Summer... Her written words were published in the second edition of the "Paštrovski Almanac", in the form of a biography of pilot Jovan Jov Zenović , otherwise her grandfather. Her professional role models are the actors Biljana Đurović and Ivan Bosiljčić, the director Božidar Đurović, the opera diva Marija Simonović, but a special place still belongs to the famous Vida Ognjenović, whom she says is a sort of mentor in her life.
"Professor Vida Ognjenović played a huge role not only in developing my being as an actor, but also me as a person. She is not only an excellent director and pedagogue, extremely dedicated to her students, and I thank her immensely for that, but also a huge encyclopedia. My city Budva must never forget her name, because she wrote and directed some of the best plays of the Grad Theater. It is an honor and a privilege to be her student, and to play in her plays," Todorović points out.
All her plans are related to Belgrade - from finishing her master's studies at the same academy, another play and a role in a TV series, to guest appearances with all three plays in which she plays throughout the region, and promotion of the "Portal" theater. The role of dreams is also outlined:
"There are many dramatic works in which I would like to try. I really like the character of Heda Gabler from Henrik Ibsen's play of the same name, but my biggest wish is to one day play 'The Minister'. Considering that my wish from three years ago has already come true, when after reading the Czech writer Pavel Kohout's play 'Cyanide at Five' I wanted, and then got a role in that duo drama with my colleague Anđela Rajić, I will not lose hope", she concluded in joke interview for "Vijesti" by Jovana Todorović.
She felt her first stage fright in the show "For a Minute of Fame"
Back in 2004, Jovana entered the final of the show "For a minute of fame" on TV IN, in which amateur actors competed. That's when, she says, she felt nervous for the first time and realized what an actor has to do.
"That feeling actually determined my future profession, even though I said since I was little that I would be an actress and nothing else! At the Academy, I stepped on stage professionally for the first time at the National Theater in Belgrade, the stage fright was perhaps more positive, due to the responsibility towards the professors", Jovana points out.
Bonus video:
