From an emotional monodrama to Nušić's classic

The audience from Bijelo Polje had the privilege of enjoying the performances of great plays on the third evening of the Amateur Drama Festival. The repertoire included the monodrama "Prisoner 508703" by the Nikšić-based Cultural and Creative Center "Akord" and Nušić's cult "Gospodja ministarka" by the Pljevlja Cultural Center, whose 12 actors managed to keep the audience's attention for a full two hours of performance. The first festival appearance of the monodrama "Prisoner 508703", which was initially written by the actor Vaso Lalicevic, while he was working on the dramaturgy Milan Erakovic, was well received. The play brings an intense and coherent dramatic story focused on the fate of prisoners. Speaking about the biggest challenges, Lalićević told "Vijesti" that on stage, since he writes the text himself and plays the character, it was most difficult for him to distinguish between what the character needs and what he wants. "It was challenging to understand the role as an entity different from myself who writes that role. The prison here represents our internal imprisonments - sexual, artistic and social," he said. As he explained, the number 508703 has no special symbolism, but is an internal joke. "The whole process was very fun because Milan and I are best friends who grew up together in the theater," Lalićević emphasized. He added that he especially appreciates the Bijelo Polje audience because they are educated, well-mannered and truly understand the theatrical act, which is why this is one of their favorite festivals.

That Pljevlja, despite being a small town, is a real hotbed of talent was demonstrated by the 12 actors in the demanding play "Gospođa ministarka", some of whom were debutants. The people of Pljevlja were the winners of the festival two years in a row, which is why the actors and director Jovana Jelovac have high expectations for this performance. "It was a challenge for all of us to work with an extended team of 12 actors, five of whom are playing in evening performances for the first time, while three of the acting school students are on stage for the first time. Getting to grips with Nušić's work was a huge undertaking. This play has not been performed in professional theaters for a long time - it was last performed at the Royal Theater 'Zetski dom'," said the director. She explained that Nušić's "Ministarka" has as many as 31 characters, which is why they had to make an adaptation. Some characters were retold, because otherwise the performance would have lasted four hours. Jelovac also pointed out the risk that, despite the excellent text, the audience's attention could easily be lost if the preparation and performance are not at a top level, which the Pljevlja ensemble obviously paid special attention to.