Herceg Novi is the captain at the bow of Boka

"The Old Captain's Hour", a book by a long-time journalist and cultural activist, takes you on a journey through the ages in the Boka Kotorska region Vitka Vujnović from Herceg Novi. This was noted by the reviewer, writer Gorčin Blagojević, and the author herself, in an interview with "Vijesti", believes that this is also an opportunity to get to know Herceg Novi better, and then love it or love it even more.

Vitka Vujnović's debut novel features four plays: Mirko i Olga Komnenovic - to the people, The King and the Stonecutter, The Hour of Captain Stumberger and A Love Story - Milica i Ivo Andric. The stories have previously come to life on stage and radio, and they speak of love, faith, and humanity, while history and personal destinies intertwine in them.

The book “The Old Captain’s Hour” will be presented to the Herceg Novi audience for the first time today. The promotion will be held at the “Talia” hotel at 19 p.m., as part of the accompanying program of the Herceg Novi April Theater Festival (HAPS). In addition to Vujnović, the following reviewers will speak at the dinner: Višnja Kosović i Gorcin Blagojevic, as well as the director Milos Latinovic, and she is a moderator Milina Kovacevic. Considering that for the radio drama "The Hour of the Old Captain" and for the love story of Milica Babić and Ivo Andrić composed the music Bosilka Kulišić i Nicholas Moreta, It was announced that they would also contribute to the promotion.

Reviewer Kosović states that the stage action in Vitka Vujnović's plays varies from explicit to symbolic, which gives the texts additional relevance and the possibility of multi-variant performance.

Latinović writes that the author has created "an important panopticon of stories that carry you through the centuries, illuminate the paths of the past and preserve the values ​​of stećak tombstones that still adorn people in this part of the world today... They leave an indelible mark of sincerity, sacrifice, faith in future generations, love and humanity, regardless of social circumstances and possible consequences."

Vitka Vujnović tells "Vijesti" more about her book, stories, motives, and then Herceg Novi, HAPS, journalism and culture.

Your book “The Old Captain’s Hour” will be presented to a local, Herceg Novi audience. What would you, as the author, say readers will learn and experience by reading and listening to “The Old Captain’s Hour”?

These are Herceg Novi stories from times past, about famous people, which have been arranged in a series that begins with Mirko i Olga Komnenovic. Mirko was one of the most beloved mayors of Herceg Novi, a benefactor, patriot, humanist. Next comes the story of the “King and the Stonecutter”, the founder and imagined first builder of Herceg Novi. I also talk about the unusual Captain Štumberger, a researcher, collector and also a benefactor who came to Novi from Slovenia, fell in love with our city and stayed there until his death. And, finally, I bring a story about love Militia i Iva Andrić, It is known that Andrić only built a house in Herceg Novi, which he called "our little paradise", and after Milica passed away, he never returned to the city they loved and spent the "happiest years" of their lives there. Their love is truly one of those that we can say is eternal.

How did your debut work come about and what was the source of inspiration?

The beginning was unusual. During the corona period, we "redesigned" HAPS, our Herceg Novi April Theatre of Ceremonies, according to our idea. Vuk Vuković in the Radio Drama Festival. Proud of the participation of drama editorial teams from Belgrade, Sarajevo, Zagreb, Podgorica. We realized that as hosts we do not have a radio drama, so we, always ready to research, decided to create one in good cooperation with the Herceg Novi Theater and Radio Herceg Novi. It was dedicated to Mirko Komnenović. And then the reasons continued to open up on their own. The book Visnje Kosovic "I'm Looking for a Name" was the inspiration for "The King and the Stonecutter", our fellow artist Nikola Ćurčin He suggested the wonderful Captain Stumberger as the hero of one of the stories, and Milica and Ivo strengthened the desire to revive the Nobel Prize Winner's House in Herceg Novi. What to know and expect, perhaps best explained by the reviewer Gorcin Blagojević when he said that reading this book is “a journey through the ages along the Boka Bay”.

The book intertwines history and personal destinies, based on real events, personal experiences, and famous (local) stories...

All the stories are based on real data from the lives of the people I'm talking about, but as much of that data is fictional, there is almost as much of it, especially in the story of Captain Štumberger and the king and the stonemason.

How did you choose the characters who would be the protagonists, whether real or fictional?

These are all people who are present in the life of this city, although they have long been gone from us. They deserve to have their lives "recorded". They deserve to be honored and remembered, just as the often turbulent times in which they lived and acted deserved, intertwining what they dreamed with what was happening, always remaining free, their own, honorable, visionaries... Višnja Kosović's book "Looking for a Name", on the basis of which the story of the king and the stonemason was born, written in a philosophical-poetic tone, was a challenge. I wanted the king who dreams and builds the city to find an interlocutor in the stonemason - an artist who should make the royal dream come true. I wanted the love with which the stonemason addresses the stone and transforms it into a rampart, a fortress, stairs or a house..., to be recognized and respected in times to come. I wanted to put the authority of art, which outlives all authority, against the authority of government.

Was it challenging to combine historical facts with artistic interpretation and universality in these plays?

The key was to keep the truth and facts recognizable. Imagination or artistic interpretation is there to add emotion, fill in the gaps, connect for one reason - to make the story come alive. It was challenging, but all of my characters' life stories are such that they give wings to the imagination.

I would say that Herceg Novi holds a special place in all of this, as well as in your life. How much has your personal relationship with the city influenced the way you write about its history and people?

I will completely simplify the answer... For me, Herceg Novi, the city where I was born, despite everything that has ever been written about it, is still an untold story... As for my personal relationship, every word about Novi is written out of love... I love some other cities too, but Novi is the captain on the bow of Boka, and Boka is one of the most beautiful bays in the world and an endless story.

You have been involved in the public life of Herceg Novi for a long time, through journalism, art, theater, HAPS... How much has your journalistic work contributed to your writing of plays, especially when it comes to research and working with historical themes? How do journalism, culture, art, and the local context intertwine, from your perspective and experience?

The discipline of research and verification of data and sources was taught to me by working in journalism. And journalism, culture and art somehow naturally intertwine. Each of these spheres has a starting point in the reality that we build on. Local context is the foundation of authenticity, persuasiveness that is important to both readers and audiences.

You've been following HAPS for years. What would you say, what kind of festival is it, how significant is it, and how well recognized and followed by the public?

Herceg Novi is justifiably known as a festival city, and HAPS is one of those that is especially loved. How significant it is is enough to be told by the fact that the name of the festival has changed the meaning of the word “haps” in the city. Nobody thinks of arrests, everyone thinks of theater. HAPS is significant in every way and grows from year to year. This year alone, there are two significant steps forward - instead of 15, it lasts 30 days and for the first time guests from Italy have arrived, and that international theater space has also been opened... For the third year in a row, according to the idea of ​​the selector Miline Kovacevic The focus is particularly on exploring the relationship between theatre and music... In this concept, it may be unique in the region. The festival has the support of the authorities, and journalists follow it very carefully, so this is also an opportunity for sincere gratitude. In the end, with all the justified praise, it can always be even better.

Is your new book in preparation?

A new book will soon be in print. It is intended for children, and again the main hero is Herceg Novi. It collects well-known legends from the founding of the city to the present day, adds some fairy tales, mentions all the places along the Riviera, important cultural monuments, again a journey through the centuries - to get to know Novi, and then, I am sure, to love it even more.

The magic is to base the story on the sound, words and imagination of the listener.

Your texts first came to life as radio dramas. What place does this form have in art and everyday life today, and why is it important?

There is little time for radiophonic creativity these days, the golden age of radio drama is over, but the synergy of radio and drama is marvelous, and the space for their interpenetration is endless. This was shown to us in the best way at HAPS by the play “Mediterranean Breviary. On the Waves of Radio Mediterana” by the Zagreb Gavela Theatre and the Radio Theatre “Bajsić and Friends”. The play is designed as a radio show that has been given a stage expression. Radio drama today may not have the mass audience it once did, but it still holds a special place... The magic is to rely on the story exclusively on the sound, words and imagination of the listener. All of this somehow forces concentrated listening, which people are not too inclined to do today, and we choose visual media as the line of least resistance. But radio drama is a resilient format, it returns and testifies that art does not have to be visually spectacular to be striking and powerful. For the imaginative, a good story and the voice that carries it are enough. After all, we say that radio is a medium for the imaginative...

You began work on the book during the pandemic, right when HAPS was functioning as the Radio Drama Festival. Did and to what extent did that context influence the form and content of the work, and how much did the book later transform?

The first radio drama was written during the pandemic, and when the pandemic passed, the others were created... The time of the pandemic did not affect the form and content, but the stories were later refined... The right title was sought and the one that was finally chosen was chosen through a creative conversation with friends who encouraged me to publish the book... That process of proofreading, editing, rereading or refining resulted in some changes, but these are the "finishing touches" that are probably common.