In anticipation of this year's Bitef, with 1664 Blanc as the general sponsor, the second get-together with media representatives was organised today in the relaxed atmosphere of the CoffeeBean cafeteria in Belgrade. On this occasion, Nikita Milivojević, artistic director of the festival, announced the international jury presided by Marine Mane.
Other members of the festival jury include actresses Jelena Stupljanin and Tihana Lazović, dramaturg and writer Dimitrije Kokanov, as well as writer and critic Natasha Tripney. They will be deciding which among the ten performances from the main programme will receive one of the festival awards - the Mira Trailović Grand Prix and the Jovan Ćirilov Main Award.
Aside from the main programme, the audience will also have an opportunity to explore a versatile side programme. As announced by Milivojević, this year Bitef Polyphony will present its jubilee, 25 edition from 1 - 3 October. CirkoBalkana vol. 12 will be taking place from 19 - 28 September at the Port of Belgrade. Once again Meeting With Authors will provide the festival audience with opportunities to exchange experiences and impressions with authors arriving from all over the world.
Theoretical Fiesta, a platform brought about by Ph.D. Ana Vujanović, will be taking place 28 and 29 September and will encompass two lectures by world-renowned professors - Nikita Dhawan will examine the role art is supposed to take on in the face of the growing social injustices, while Maria do Mar Castro Varela will be dealing with new interpretations and understandings of fragility and insecurity.
Colours of Bitef erase borders
Bitef director Miloš Latinović reminded us that some of the most successful guest performances at the festival were a result of excellent collaboration with foreign cultural centres in Belgrade - collaboration with Goethe institute and French Institute, for example, have been ongoing for decades.
This year's Bitef will open with Mellowing by the Dance On Ensemble from Berlin, co-produced with Onassis Stegi from Greece and the National Choreographic Centre Rillieux-la-Pape from France.
"This performance will feature 11 dancers over 40", said Dr Christoph Veldhues, director of the Goethe Institute. "The piece consciously asks the question: What does it mean to mature as an artist? How does the body change, what modifications does it bring into the performance, how are posture and stance affected, in the literal sense of the word, but also as a matter of mind and spirit? Mellowing also ponders whether artists mellow with age."
Artistic director of the festival Nikita Milivojević drew our attention to the previously announced grand visit by the centuries-old French company Comédie-Française with their performance Hecuba, Not Hecuba. Even though it was said that this would be the first time this theatre would be introduced to the Belgrade audience, the festival team concluded, during very thorough summer preparations, that Comédie-Française has, in fact, visited the region before, but not as part of the Bitef festival.
"It has been established that Comédie-Française company actually visited Belgrade in 1936, during their so-called propaganda tour", Milivojević revealed, thanking the Research and Documentation Centre of the National Theatre in Belgrade, which has been crucial in ascertaining this very important detail of the cultural life of the city.
Pointing out the significance of this year's visit of the company, Caroline Sotta, cultural attachée of the French Institute, reminded us that the director of the Hecuba, Not Hecuba Thiago Rodrigues has recently become the director of the International Theatre Festival in Avignon, one of the most important and most prestigious festivals of contemporary theatre in the world.
"Through his theatre pieces, but also as the curator of the festival, Thiago Rodrigues cherishes European values, both in the geographical and cultural sense of the word, nurturing intercultural dialogue and cultural diversity. Regional presentation of this piece also represents a very important moment for Teatroskop, the regional programme supporting exchange in the field of performing arts between Southeast Europe and France, led by the French institute", Sotta added, stressing that by hosting this important event Bitef has become part of this year's programme Rhythm of French Culture.
Plamena Halacheva, Deputy Head of the EU Delegation to Serbia, stated that Bitef has, once again, stepped outside the borders of Europe with its programme, precisely thanks to the important theatre collaborations.
"By virtue of co-productions of numerous European partners, this year's Bitef will provide us with an opportunity to see performances from Brazil and Bolivia as well. This is fantastic and precisely what contributes to the power of Bitef, as the place of encounter of top European and world artists. It is a great honour and recognition having such a theatre festival, both for Belgrade and the region", she added.
"EU will continue supporting culture and cultural actors from Serbia. We opened the Europe House at the heart of Belgrade, which will be another place for our encounters. I invite you to visit the Europe House, follow events and take part in creating its programme and participating in its life here on."
The blue and white friendship of Bitef and 1664 Blanc
The general sponsor of this year's Bitef is the brand 1664 Blanc, who are proud to contribute to the success of the festival this way.
"The brand 1664 Blanc, famous for its sophisticated flavour and superb quality, fits perfectly into the atmosphere Bitef exudes. As a festival devoted to art and creativity Bitef is a natural choice for our support because it reflects the values 1664 Blanc represents - elegance, innovation and commitment to excellence. We are very happy to be part of this unique event and demonstrate our support to the talented artists and the cultural scene", said Jovana Vještica, Carlsberg Serbia company corporate affairs manager.
Festival tickets are available online, at the festival site, with a 10% discount. Tickets are also available at the regular prices at the Bitef box office, open at the festival press centre at the first floor of the MTS Hall, at the Nikola Pašić Square. Business hours of the box office 2 - 24 September will be 11am - 3pm (except Sunday), while 25 September - 4 October it will keep the same hours, but will also be open for customers on Sundays.
Patrons of the festival are the Secretariat for Culture of the City of Belgrade and the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Serbia. General sponsor of the 58Bitef24 is 1664 Blanc, which has recognized the significance of the festival as a cultural event and contributes to its success. Traditionally, the festival has received support from the Goethe Institut, the French Institute and the EU Delegation. Partner and friend of the Bitef festival is the New Moment New Ideas Company, creative agency of the festival. Generali osiguranje Srbija, Erste Bank a.d. Novi Sad and Coca-Cola HBC Serbia are once again partners of the festival.
