TERRA INCOGNITA PLAY TO BE PREMIERED AT FESTIVAL IN GRADIŠKA FIRST, THEN BEFORE LOCAL AUDIENCE

EAST SARAJEVO, MAY 13 /SRNA/ – The East Sarajevo National Theatre will premiere its new Terra Incognita play at the Ljubica Festival in Gradiška, which begins on May 17, while the local audience will have the opportunity to see it on May 23, marking the theatre's first anniversary.

Acting director of the East Sarajevo National Theatre Jelena Krstić told the press the project is the result of three-month-collaboration between the National Theatre and the Gradiška City Theatre, adding that this is the second production by this cultural institution.

East Sarajevo National Theatre Artistic Director Zoran Todorović emphasized the high quality of the collaboration, which he said would continue.

He has noted that the play is based on a text by Nebojša Romčević, expressing great satisfaction with the cast, who embraced this story with open hearts and enthusiasm.

Actor and Artistic Director of the Gradiška City Theatre Admir Mešić says the cooperation agreement with the East Sarajevo National Theatre was signed in November, the result of which is an excellent production, he believes.

"It is a great honour for us to open this year's Ljubica Festival, the third edition, in Gradiška with this play," Mešić highlighted.

Director Nemanja Ranković has explained that the play deals with the present time, where "all forms have unfortunately fallen apart," but that one must find oneself what can keep one going - truth and love.

According to him, the play addresses the search for identity and the establishment of selfhood in response to new and changing circumstances.

Svetlana Andrić, an actress of the Republika Srpska Children's Theatre who also performs in the play, says the point is that everyone dreams and searches for an ideal, utopian land, regardless of being aware of its non-existance.

"This quest for identity and self-awareness begins the moment we realize that no one – no country, no circumstance – will save us but ourselves," Andrić stressed.

She added that one may move to a perfectly organised system, but one carries with oneself own baggage of problems, prejudices, and fears.

"Our characters, though vastly different, come from one country, and even those from so-called perfect countries are just as full of problems and fears," she noted.

Marija Novaković, an actress of the East Sarajevo National Theatre, thanked her home theatre and the cast, emphasizing that the director allowed and even invited all the actors to contribute creatively, not only as performers but also in other areas of the production.

Milan Dimić, an actor of the same theatre, says he immediately liked the script, and praised how the actors shaped their characters, portraying people with real ambitions and goals - people striving to improve and simplify their lives.