Drugi jezik na kojem je dostupan ovaj članak: Bosnian
Kriva Reka, an idyllic mountain village on the slopes of Kopaonik, has about 400 residents. The tumultuous and sad history of this village (earthquake in the eighties, terrible suffering during World War II, etc.) is the basis of their harmony and positivity, so unusual for our environment. They are direct, curious, hard-working people. At the invitation to visit the Yugoslav Drama Theatre and watch Moliere’s The Imaginary Invalid, directed by Jagos Markovic, almost all invited people of Kriva Reka responded, probably because in Kriva Reka, as in most towns and villages in Serbia, nothing is happening in the field of culture.
A total of fifty people from Kriva Reka embarked on the small adventure with the Yugoslav Drama Theatre. The bus departed for the capital city in front of the shy village shop. Many had been there since early morning, eager to get the whole thing started. Excitement among them was huge. Almost none of them has ever been in Belgrade, let alone at a prestigious theater play. Expectations are high. Detailed preparations for a lengthy trip were completed. Everything was ready: hair, makeup, phones to take pictures, pancakes and cheese pie for the road … a girl from the shop spilled water behind the bus (for luck). Have a nice trip!
Before the play, the group briefly tours the city with a tour bus. Cheerful youth of Kriva Reka were singing and waving Belgraders, who warmly wave back. Visit to the YDT is in the evening. Impatient and delighted, they took their seats. Soon they will see in real life some of their idols from television – actors Jelisaveta Seka Sabljić, Dragan Mićanović, Vlasta Velisavljević, Radovan Vujović … Soon they will “feel” the theater for the first time.
The show is in progress. Anticipation and excitement, honest laughter and enchantment with the scene shows only one thing: that thrill that a quality theater production brings to the audience is a universal feeling, and the language of theater from ancient times communicates directly with all levels of society. After the performance, Kriva Reka shares its impressions: it was unique, it was unexpected, fun, better than the cinema… everyone would like to come back to the theater or that the theater comes to them. The question arises of the lack of cultural events outside the capital. In smaller towns offer is scarce, and in rural areas is almost nonexistent.
After the show, directly from the stage, cast comes down to say hi and take pictures with the delighted people of Kriva Reka. Fifty smiling faces, who even after the hard field work, high temperatures, four-hour drive to the capital, and the same back, did not mind all this on their way to the first and real theater experience. Not only the artists and the organizers deserved an applause this day, but also the new, and we are certain already loyal audience from Kriva Reka, who will grab each subsequent chance of direct encounter with art eagerly and gratefully.
This beautiful idea has become an action, and the action has left an indelible mark in the mountain village on the slopes of Kopaonik. Impressions are not yet settled, and only one theatrical experience may have opened the door to a future cultural life of Serbian villages. It would be good if the action Applause for Kriva Reka would become a tradition, and that residents of other interested rural areas are also provided the same opportunity – to visit, feel and experience the authentic magic of theater performances. Serb villages deserve the attention and applause for the interest and openness to new cultural experiences. We applaud all of them!
Here’s what the first visit of Kriva Reka villagers to a theater looked like, and their impressions on the play they’ve seen: