Theatre » Pozorište | 41 Praksa Bitefa je i da prvom predstavom napravi sponu između prošlogodišnjeg i aktuelnog programa It is also a Bitef practise to use the first play to create a link between the previous year’s programme and the current one 56T H B I T E F We, the heroes of our own labour BITEF runs from 23rd September to 2nd October, when Belgrade will once again shine on the map of world theatre, and the audience will long recount their experiences LATE SEPTEMBER BRINGS US THE BELGRADE INTERNATIONAL THEATRE Festival (BITEF), a festive holiday time for all serious theatre lovers. And this year’seditionwill harkbackto itsglorious beginning, in 1967, when the first edition blazed a trail through the most exciting regions of world theatre, bringingthemost renowned names fromall over theworld to the Serbian capital. BITEF’smission isn’tmerely artistic. It also strives to use the language of theatre to address crucial social topics. And this year it’s the turn of labour rights to be examined; rights that are “threatened by the appetites of capitalism, but also additionally – by the coronavirus pandemic and the war in Ukraine,” explainsBITEFArtisticDirector Ivan Medenica. The slogan of the 56th edition, “We, the Heroes of Our Own Labour”, may seem somewhat comical toyounger generationswhohave acritical biasagainst theperiodof socialist Yugoslaviawhen the Pesma o radu[SongofLabour] –ofwhichthis sloganisaverse–firstemerged.However, the plays will address serious issues, from the precariat to forced retraining and redundancies as a result of economic restructuring. The festival’sprogrammewill include the staging of nine theatre works from Germany, Belgium,Mexico, France, Serbia, Slovenia and the UK. BITEF is also specific in the diverse venues that host its performances. Included in the mix this year are the National Theatre, the YugoslavDramaTheatreandtheBitef Theatre, when it comes to classical theatrehouses.However, ensembles and troupes will also performat the CentreforCulturalDecontamination (CZKD), theFacultyofMedicineand the Historical Museum of Serbia. The BITEF team didn’t reach such a decision without good reason. Specifically, some of the plays themselves seek specific venues that will enable themtobetter bondwith the subjectmatter theyaddress.One suchplay isDr. Auslender (Made for Germany),which is seemingly tailormade for one of the amphitheatres of the Faculty of Medicine; another is Gardien Party, which is always presented inmuseums for guestperformances by authors Valérie Mréjen and Mohamed El Khatib. ThePort ofBelgrade, ontheother hand, “contributes to the democratisation of culture effect”, which wouldmean that utilising it for theatricalpurposesbringscontemporary art closer to the people. At the same time, urbancomplexes becomeplatforms for creative exchange, as is the case with industrial zones in many of the world’s major cities. It is also a Bitef practise to use thefirst play to create a linkbetween the previous year’s programme and the current one, which is calledThe Prologue.That functionthis timebelongs toGermanplay (Not) the End of the World. “This work by one of the world’s leading directors, Katie FOTO: SINIŠA ILIĆ
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