البوسنة والهرسك

"Hell's Strings" delighted the audience at the opening of the 15th Day of the Theatre "Vitez 2023"

Rich theatre repertoire at this year's theatre days in Vitez

The jubilee 15th Theatre Days in Vitez officially began with the performance of "Hell's Strings". The honour of opening this year's theatre days in Vitez went to Novica Bogdanović, vice president of the ALF BiH Board of Directors and director of the Foundation for Cultural Development from Banja Luka.

"It's wonderful to come to Vitez, see a full hall for the umpteenth time and feel the magic of the theatre. I looked at the schedule of performances that will be performed this year and you can really feel privileged to have GKM Vitez as a cultural institution that organizes one of the most significant cultural events in Bosnia and Herzegovina. I am particularly pleased with the great cooperation between the DIS Theatre and GKM Vitez, as a member of the ALF network of BiH, but also the fact that all the professionals who once came to these two theatres as children worked on this play," he said at the opening of the theatre days. Novica Bogdanović.

"Paklene Strune" is a co-production of the City Youth Theatre from Vitez and the DIS Theatre from Banja Luka, which boldly explores the limits of human and artistic expression.

This contemporary play, authored and directed by Ognjen Bogdanović, is a completely unusual and innovative stage experience. With his imaginative approach and experimental style, Ognjen Bogdanović succeeds in telling a story about the search for truth and understanding human limits. His text unusually interweaves fantastical elements with realistic aspects of reality, creating an atmosphere that allows the audience to explore different emotional and intellectual layers. Through this game of recognition and opposites, Bogdanović raises questions about the essence of human existence and our ability to overcome internal and external obstacles.

Young actors Sunčica Strukar and Marko Mirković shone on stage in roles that required their full commitment and authenticity. Their synergy and mutual understanding contribute to the creation of extremely convincing and complex characters... The technical support for the play is Anja Banjac, and the executive producers are Ivan Sajević and Novica Bogdanović.

This co-production brought special creativity and strength for young creators to present artistic visions, experiments and unconventional ideas and enables the play "Hell's Strings" to be recognized as one of the most innovative theatre works in modern times...

GKM Vitez thanked for the general patronage the line minister Bojan Domić, who attended the performance, as well as the festival's partner, the ALF network in BiH, on whose behalf the network's national coordinator, Miralem Tursinović, attended the performance.

"I am happy that we started another theatre days in a great way, especially since we got a new great play in the repertoire. The superb performance of our young actors, Sunčica Strukar and Marko Mirković, as well as the great directorial solutions of Ognjen Boganović, gave birth to a play that will certainly find its place at professional festivals throughout the region. This is a continuation of the exceptional cooperation between our theatre and the DIS theatre from Banja Luka, which are members of the ALF network in BiH", said Ivan Sajević, head of GKM Vitez.

At this year's theatre days in Vitez, the audience will have the opportunity to see 15 plays, among which 5 are professional productions, and most of the other plays belong to the very top of theatre amateurism in the surrounding countries. This is certainly the most numerous and most visited theatre festival in Central Bosnia, and probably among several of the best in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Theatre groups from BiH, Croatia, Serbia, Slovenia and Germany will perform.

Already next weekend, the Croatian Theatre "Mask" from Munich will host the performance "The Passion of Judas Iscariot" and the Croatian National Theatre "Šibenik" with the play "Halatafl".

The general sponsor of the 15th Theatre Day "Knight 2023" is the Ministry of Education, Science, Youth, Culture and Sports of the Canton of Central Bosnia and Minister Bojan Domić, and the partner of the festival is ALF BiH.

Three great plays marked the "Children's Weekend" at the theater days in Vitez

The jubilee, 15th days of the "Vitez 2023" theater, in its eighth week, offered the audience a "Children's weekend" in which three great plays for children were presented.

The children, as well as their parents, were first delighted by the play "Ivica and Marica in the Enchanted Forest" in Vitez by the Sinj Folk Theater from Sinj.

It is a real theatrical magic for the youngest, which their parents and grandparents also enjoyed. The large audience in the Vitez Theater was joined by young basketball players from OKK "Vitez", who arrived at the show in an organized manner.

After the play, the young actors from Sinj were rewarded with a long applause, and many children wanted to take a photo with Ivica and Marica and the rest of the theater group, which the guests were happy to oblige.

The play was directed by Željko Viculin, based on the text by Sava Škobić. The roles are played by Rebeka Čović, Toni Batovanja, Marta Malbaša, Luka Vidić, Iris Bošković, Leonarda Masla and Aneta Vrca. The director's assistant is Petar Goret, and Marija Mandac was in charge of the costumes.

The play "The Way Around the World" by the Vitez City Youth Theater amused, made the children laugh and delighted their parents as well. The fluttering performance, a handful of songs and the great energy of the knightly actors garnered many sympathies and, on several occasions, strong applause.

"A journey around the world", a theatrical play created under the "hot hammer" of Vitez theater actors, takes us to a world where only a child's imagination can reach and where everything is possible - even traveling the entire planet on a small green mobile. Many songs, dances and games have one purpose - to create four best friends and make their friendship an unforgettable life adventure. Bruno Grebenar, Nikola Matković, Marko Mirković and Ana Gabrić play on stage. The play was directed by Marko Mirković, who also wrote the adaptation of Todet Nikoletić's text. The technical support is Svjetlana Križanović, and the executive producer of the play is Ivan Sajević.

The children's weekend at the theater days in Vitez concluded with the play "Sleeping Beauty and the Brave Prince", by GKM Vitez. A large audience in the full Theater Hall in Vitez enjoyed the play and energy of the young actors, and the performance was followed by a long round of applause and, by now, the inevitable taking pictures of the youngest with the actors on stage.

The play features: Ana Radoš, Glorija Radoš, Ena Bonić, Klara Visković, Erika Vujević, Arijana Šantić, Pavla Plavčić, Lana Čalić, Mila Čalić, Emin Šahdan, Ena Čalić, Sofija Ćosić, Marija Martinović. The play is based on the text of Sava Škobić, the adaptation of the text, as well as the direction, is signed by Anja Stipinović. The assistant directors are Emin Šahdan and Glorija Radoš, and the executive producer of the play is Ivan Sajević.

This year's theater days will be concluded next weekend when the audience will have the opportunity to watch two professional productions. The play "Balkan Square with Chalk" produced by the Alt Theater from Sarajevo will be performed on Friday, October 20, while the Croatian National Theater in Mostar will conclude its theater days with the play "Women's Conversations" on Sunday, October 22. Both performances are scheduled at 8:00 p.m.

The general sponsor of the 15th Theater Day "Vitez 2023" is the Ministry of Education, Science, Youth, Culture and Sports of the Canton of Central Bosnia and Minister Bojan Domić, and the partner of the festival is ALF BiH.

The 1st Tuzla Freedom Festival was held in Tuzla from March 10 to 13, in the International Studio of Ismet Mujezinović.

The festival was organised by the Youth Resource Center Tuzla, in partnership with the DIS Theater Banja Luka and the City Youth Theater Vitez. It brought together 76 young artists from all over Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The aim of the festival was to encourage the involvement of young people in active problem solving of young people, but also to provide creative contribution to awareness and research and possibly proposing ideas and solutions for future projects.

Two workshops were held with young people by Dis Theater "From idea to stage" and by GKM Vitez called "Art Production".

The festival was attended by 5 young poets, and included 3 short feature films, 2 videos, 1 forum Theater, 4 exhibitions of paintings, 1 installation, street art, performance, urban graphics, and illustration.

The young people from Bugojno high school won the first place with the film: "TWO SCHOOLS WITHOUT A ROOF". Authors: Farah Terzić, Medina Bajrić, Eldar Mandžić, Merjem Halilović, Nejla Kadrić, Fatima Aletić, Adi Velagić, Iman Idrizović.

Second place was won by Vanja Stankić with street art, which did not arise from the desire to present Tuzla in a creative way.

The third place was shared by the poet Mirza Pinjić and singer and composer Vanja Strukar, who sang and played a song about the post-war situation in her city.

Ramo Tučić received a special award for the best stage performance with his exhibition "I exist".

Sara Mujanović received a special award for original artistic expression with her video "Radopič", which talks about the equality of women in BH society.

The Serbian cultural and educational association "Prosveta" Prnjavor won a special recognition for the pedagogical approach for the play "It's not me". This forum theatrical work was created in the workshop process of one of the focus groups with young people on the topic "What bothers us". It represents a dystopian picture of the modern life of young people who are alienated, scared, wounded and forcibly popular, hiding their true selves from everyone and even from themselves.

For the participants of the festival, two performances "Kanata" DIS Theater Banja Luka and "Around the World" GKM Vitez were performed.

During the festival, young people made and developed a performance called "I want peace", which they performed under the full square "Freedom" in Tuzla. The performance received a Special Award from the festival jury.

ALF NETWORK BIH DAYS IN TUZLA (NOVEMBER 03 – 05, 2023)

In Tuzla, from November 3rd to 5th, and in accordance with the decisions of the Management Board of the Network from Vitez, the first of the three planned joint activities of the ALF BiH network - ALF Days in Tuzla - was held. During this manifestation, two theatre plays were performed, and a meeting of ALF BiH members from Tuzla and potential new members of the network.

This two-day event was organized by the main office of ALF BiH, DIS Theatre Banja Luka and City Youth Theatre Vitez, and with the support of the Centre for Culture Tuzla, Youth Theatre Tuzla, the City Administration of the City of Tuzla, the Forum of Citizens of Tuzla and the hotel "Miris dunja 88" Tuzla .

Members of ALF BiH actively participated in the event (apart from spectators): Youth resource center (ORC – HoN B&H), DIS Theatre Banja Luka, City Youth Theatre Vitez, Forum Citizens Tuzla, Draft Theatre Tuzla, Magic Factory Tuzla (TFF), and organizations that are not yet members of the network: "Guardians of Smiles" Banja Luka, Youth theatre Tuzla and DIS scena Zvornik.

Total number of active participants of the event: 26. Of these, 13 participants - members of ALF BiH, 13 participants from organizations that are not members of ALF BiH. Number of audiences at the performances – 250. Number of participants in the ALF meeting – 15 (of which 2 participants from organizations that are not members of the ALF BiH)

Friday, November 3, 2023 at 7:30 p.m

In the Hall of the Tuzla Youth theatre, an event was opened and a co-production performance of the DIS theatre Banja Luka and the Vitez City Youth theatre was played - "THE HELLISH STRINGS ".

"Paklene Strune" is a co-production of the City Youth theatre from Vitez and the DIS theatre from Banja Luka, which boldly explores the limits of human and artistic expression.

This contemporary play, authored and directed by Ognjen Bogdanović, is a completely unusual and innovative stage experience. With his imaginative approach and experimental style, Ognjen Bogdanović succeeds in telling a story about the search for truth and understanding human limits. His text strangely interweaves fantastical elements with realistic aspects of reality, creating an atmosphere that allows the audience to explore different emotional and intellectual layers. Through this game of recognition and opposites, Bogdanović raises questions about the essence of human existence and our ability to overcome internal and external obstacles.

This co-production brought special creativity and strength to young creators to present artistic visions, experiments and unconventional ideas and enables the play "Hell's Strings" to be recognized as one of the most innovative theatre works in modern times...

The audience rewarded the actors and crew from Banja Luka and Vitez with warm applause.

Saturday, November 4, 2023 at 12:00 p.m

A working meeting with members of the network and potential new members was held in the premises of the Tuzla Youth Resource Centre (ORC) and the Tuzla Citizens' Forum. The meeting was attended by representatives of the following organizations - members of the network: Tuzla Citizens' Forum, Youth Resource Centre Tuzla, DIS theatre Banja Luka, City Youth theatre Vitez, Magic Factory (TFF) Tuzla, "Keepers of Smiles" Banja Luka (potential new member), and volunteers of the ORC Tuzla youth group.

The meeting was opened by the Vice-President of the Board of Directors of ALF BiH, Novica Bogdanović, and then the coordinator of ALF BiH Miralem Tursinovic informed the attendees about:

- The activities of the ALF BiH network in the past period.

As part of this, they discussed the activities carried out so far and the communication channels that have been launched, on which news, news, information and announcements are published almost daily:

https://orctuzla.ba/alfbih/ (ALF BiH website)

https://www.annalindhfoundation.org/networks/bosnia-and-herzegovina (subpage of ALF BiH on the main page of ALF)

https://www.facebook.com/Anna.Lindh.Foundation.BiH (fb page of the network)

https://www.facebook.com/groups/httpswww.alfbih (fb network group)

- ALF activities in general

Within this, the attendees were informed about the current projects and calls of the ALF:

"ALF in motion" https://annalindhfoundation.org/alfinmotion-anna-lindh-foundation-mobility-programme-fourth-edition

whose aim is to strengthen the mobility of ALF in European and Mediterranean countries. The deadline for sending applications for this fourth call of the year is November 12

“ALF Hands-on” https://annalindhfoundation.org/calls/alf-hands-on

This is an invitation to hold online workshops and trainings. The application deadlines for this year have expired, but they will probably be repeated in 2024. You will be informed more about this after the meeting of the heads of ALF networks in Istanbul, in December this year.

Network coordinator Miralem Tursinović informed the attendees that in the coming period (December 2023 and March 2024) he will organize two online sessions for ALF BIH members, in which we will help potential applicants for ALF invitations to make and send their applications more easily.

It was emphasized once again that network members should be active in the exchange of information, and support in possible joint activities.

At the end of the meeting, the members of the network were informed that in the coming period (January and March 2024) we plan to hold two more joint online sessions for members of ALF BIH in which we will help potential applicants for ALF calls to make and send their applications more easily.

Members of the network were informed that in the coming period (January and March 2024) we plan to hold two more such joint activities (Days of ALF BiH) in two cities of BiH and that the invitation to members is open.

Saturday, November 4, 2023 at 7:00 p.m

The play "DIS Scene Zvornik" was played on the chamber stage of the Tuzla Youth Centre - "Morning is smarter than night"

The morning is smarter than the night is a play in which the attitude of modern generations towards history and literature is shown, and the work also showed the impact of technology on modern students who, as a result, devote little time to education and monitoring what they do through the educational program.

The play won two awards at the recently concluded Festival of Youth Theatres of RS: the award for the supporting male role of Zlatko Janjić, in the role of Atila, and the special award for humour.

This play is a project of DIS Theatre Banjaluka and Bosnia and Herzegovina Resilience Initiative (BHRI), which is implemented by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and financed by the Austrian Development Cooperation.

On this occasion, we would like to thank all the participants of the ALF day in Tuzla, everyone who supported us, and the Tuzla audience and all the young people who learned from this event.