William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet play, directed by Predrag Miki Manojlović and produced by Radionica Integracija (Belgrade) and Multimedia Centre (Prishtina) played at the National Theatre in Tirana form June 7-8, 2016.
Among the Albanian and Serbian actors that performed in the play were Uliks Fehmiu, Anita ManÄić, Mensur Safà§iu, Tristan Halilaj, Milica Janevski, Jovana Gavrilovic, Edona Reshitaj, Nikola Rakocevic, Arta Selimi, Nebojsa Glogovac, Faris Berisha, Goran Jevtic, Armend Baloku, Natasa Tapuskovic, and Miki Manojlović.
With scenography by Branko Hojnik, costume design by Zora Mojsilovic, choreography by Sonya Vukicevic, playwright by Olga Dimitrijevic, the play proved once again that art and culture can bring people together, no matter the political situation among the two countries.
Supported by the Regional Cooperation Council- Sarajevo, Tirana Regional Cooperation Council- Ministry of Culture – Tirana, Open Society Foundation – Tirana, in collaboration with the National Theatre in Tirana, Center for Openness and Dialogue (COD ) – Tirana, Integration Workshop – Belgrade and Multimedia Centre – Pristina the play achieved great success.
Romeo and Juliet premiered in April 2015 at the National Theatre in Belgrade and was then followed by its premiere in Kosovo in May 2015 at the National Theatre and other performances in Zagreb, Sarajevo, and Belgrade.
Not long ago, the first troupe of ballet of Albania participated for the first time, with a three-day tour at the 13th edition of Festival of Dance in Serbia, on April 8, 9, and 10, 2016, a show that was received very well by the Serbian public.
The TKOB troupe was represented with the choreographic pieces of La Stravaganza & Noces by Angelin Preljocaj, which was staged in Belgrade, Novi Sad, and NiŠ¡.
“It’s a world-class choreographer, whom we know and this has been a party for the public and we are very satisfied,” said Ada Raspor, the first Serbian ballerina.
“We had an exceptional hospitality. We felt like home. It seems that art is not connected to politics at all, it simplifies things and makes them more beautiful,” said Rovena Shqefi while Elda Logo thanked the Serbian public for their applause and for making here feel really good.
While a few weeks ago well-known Albanian soprano Inva Mula performed at the National Theatre in Belgrade and was received by Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic the day before her performance.
In the frame of the recently signed Protocol on Cooperation between the National Theater in Belgrade and the National Theater of Opera and Ballet in Tirana, Mula performed the role of Mimi in the production of Giacomo Puccini’s La Boheme, under the baton of Dejan Savic.
“It was an extraordinary reception. When I was going to the theater I noticed a huge picture of me at the main gate. For an artist it is very important to understand that there is a great desire for hospitality and respect to an artist. When I was told that Prime Minister Vucic would receive me, I was thrilled, because it is a huge honor made to an artist, being with a Prime Minister with positive energies and who supports art. It was beautiful,” Mula said.
“Art has a huge and beautiful message, peaceful and fast. Politics needs years to do this, history needs centuries. Bridges created by art are the most solid, the most beautiful and the shortest ones,” she added.
