City Theatre awards friendship, consistency and talent

The play "Protection", based on the work of the same name by Branislav Nušić, adapted and directed by Milan Nešković, was performed last night in the amphitheater of the Holy Trinity Monastery in Stanjevići, continuing the drama program of the XXXIX Grad Teatar festival.

The play is a co-production of the JU Grad Teatar and the National Theatre Sombor. Before the performance, director Milan Nešković was presented with the "Grad Teatar" award for his contribution to theatre art for the year 2024/2025. ž

The director of the "Grad Teatar" public institution, Milena Lubarda Marojević, said that this performance is a symbol of many years of partnership and trust for the Grad Teatar.

She emphasized that the award to Milan Nešković is the result of his many years of creative presence, as well as his relationship with the festival, which is reflected not only in the plays he directs, but also in a deeply human and friendly relationship.

"Milan Nešković is the laureate of this year's award, the 28th in a row, for a special contribution to the art of theatre. Milan and his work have been present at the Grad Teatar festival since 2016. Since then, during these ten years, we have seen his plays: 'White Coffee', 'The Path of Prometheus', 'A Piece of Petlić', and then 'The Seagull', and in between we have jointly produced two major plays - 'Selestina' in co-production with the Yugoslav Drama Theatre and 'Protection', which we dedicated together with the National Theatre from Sombor to a great jubilee, 160 years since the birth of Branislav Nušić. It was the first time that Nušić's text was produced on the stage of the Grad Teatar," said Lubarda Marojević and added that the "Grad Teatar" award goes not only to an artist, but also to a man who is professionally and personally strongly connected to this festival.

"This institution and the festival consider Milan Nešković a great friend. For many visible and invisible reasons, professional, directorial, but also human. He is a collaborator we can always rely on, who understands the specificity of the festival, who is always there without question and without reservation. Because of all this, we are all the more happy that this year's jury members Branislava Liješević, Božena Jelušić and Bojana Kovačević unanimously decided that the 28th laureate of the 'Grad Teatar' award should be director Milan Nešković."

Jury President Branislava Liješević expressed her reflection not only on Milan Nešković's directorial aesthetics, but also on his character, his position in the development of contemporary theater, and on the friendship that transcends professional boundaries.

"Milan Nešković is at a crossroads when he ceases to be a young director and approaches full directorial maturity. This is an important directorial station, when less is forgiven and more is expected. Milan Nešković has long been felt to be very ready for a new directorial phase, but also to have great responsibility. Not only in his plays, but also in his actions," said Liješević, adding that Nešković's contribution is not exclusively artistic, but also institutional and ethical.

"In his career so far, he has been indebted to the City of Theatre in many ways. Not only with his performances and creativity, but also with his sincere loyalty, love, and understanding of festival situations when he needs to step in and help, without asking for conditions or funds. That is the quality of a true friend, and Milan Nešković has earned that title and become a significant figure on whom the City of Theatre can always rely. The plays he directed for the City of Theatre have rich festival and repertoire lives, carrying the name of the City of Theatre to other theater environments. We believe that this award will further strengthen the friendship and future participation in the festival."

Nešković was presented with the award by Anita Šabotić, a member of the Council of the Public Institution City Theatre, after which Nešković addressed the audience, revealing that since he was a child he had dreamed of his name being inscribed on the walls of Budva's Old Town, along with the names of the greatest.

"This award is a great honor, but it is also a huge responsibility to receive such a prestigious award before my fortieth birthday. I feel that I will have to work this much and twice as hard in the next, God willing, thirty to forty years. I am most grateful to the fact that my favorite festival and my favorite theater, Budva Grad Teatar and Sombor National Theater, actually contributed to me receiving this award. Thank you to the National Theater from Sombor, where this is already my fourth performance, and thank you to Grad Teatar, where this is my second production. Special thanks to Milena, who connected me with Montenegrin actors whom I would not have met if it were not for these joint ventures. One of my first memories related to the sea is coming to Budva and those flags hanging on the walls of the Old Town. They had the names of the great directors who directed at Grad Teatar that year. I remember that as a child I recognized the name Dejan Mijač because he is from Valjevo and Vida Ognjenović. Today, as Milena said, my name has been on those flags for ten years. Being in such a "In society, with those people who received this award before me, it is a great honor and obligation and an immense pleasure. Thank you and the wonderful audience of the City of Theatre," said Nešković.

In addition to Milan Nešković, who was in charge of adaptation and direction, the creative team consists of Biljana Grgur, costume designer, Daniela Dimitrovska, set designer, Duda Buržujka, music, Staša Blečić, stage movements and Dr. Dijana Marojević, stage speech and Ivan Nikolovski, assistant set designer.

The play stars: Ninoslav Đorđević, Marija Maša Labudović, Ivana V. Jovanović, Saša Torlaković, Biljana Keskenović, Ana Rudakijević, Lazar Nikolić, Srđan Aleksić, Julija Petković, Miloš Lazić, Stevan Vuković and Staša Blečić.

Actor Stevan Vuković emphasized that it was a privilege to work with Nešković, especially on a text that bears the stamp of Nušić's acumen.

"First of all, I want to congratulate Milan on this significant recognition. It is well deserved, especially because of the cooperation we had on 'Protection'. He possesses an exceptional imagination and creation, especially when it comes to Nušić and domestic comedians. This is valuable for our theater, for festivals, but first of all for the audience who has the opportunity to experience these readings of the classics in the right way. It is not just a comedy, it is a precisely shaped social picture."

Actor Miloš Lazić spoke about the universality of Nušić's message.

"The theme of this play is such that, I think, it will be relevant in a hundred, even five hundred years, these are themes that will not be lost. But we tried not to give a political message, but to show little people, those who are trying to find their place in the system, often clumsily, tragicomically. The audience recognizes that effort and that disharmony, and that is where the strength of this play is reflected."

The play "Protection" will be performed at this year's festival tonight, July 19th, starting at 21pm.