22 October 2021
Just before the pandemic, The City Theatre of Korça, the City Theatre of Bitola, and Zvezdara Theatre of Belgrade gave life to one of the most beautiful cooperations ever, enabled by the Western Balkans Fund.
“We could not believe the warmth, wonderful reception we received everywhere. It was a fairytale”, remembers Zamira Kita, a well-known Albanian actress, currently the Director of Korça Theatre.
“It is sad that there are still some misconceptions. I remember people were saying to us, beware when you are in Belgrade. It is not safe to travel on a bus with Albanian plates, they might throw stones at you. Instead, we found people applauding us everywhere, hugging, ovations. We were received in the Municipality; we meet many important people and created a network of connections that enabled us many more partnerships. It was the best showcase imaginable for the region”, she underlines.
What went in stage was a drama written by playwright Dusan Kovacevic, directed by a North Macedonian Director, with mixed nationality actors, translated in every language, a drama that amazed people in Belgrade, Bitola, and Korçe.
But, what is the legacy of “Doctor Schuster”? “Since then, we regularly collaborate with each other in many other fields. The Bitola troop has performed many times in Korça, and we have done the same in Bitola. The troop from Belgrade was invited to attend in our city last year, but the pandemic postponed the trip. Still, thanks to that drama, we are not regularly speaking, exchanging experiences, and performing together with all the troops in the region”, adds Zamira.
And you know what she says is true when she shows you that the mixed troop was invited to perform in Turkey. “From the Western Balkans, straight to Bursa. They waited for us with curiosity and we received a great reception. For them, we were not Albanians, North Macedonian, Serbians, etc, but we were just a wonderful troop from the Western Balkans. And it was an experience worth living”. An experience, made in WBF.
The messages conveyed by the work of Dusan Kovacevic are complex, from respect for the elderly, for the dead, to the relationship with God.
In the black comedy that came on stage, everything revolves around 7 wheelchairs, which metaphorically address our society’s handicap on shocking truths like father-child relationship, husband-wife, sister-brother, brother-brother.
Currently, we are very close to launching the next call for proposals, the biggest in our organization’s history. For more information, stay tuned in our channels.
