Young Theatre Festival in Bale brings a rich free programme for the wider public

From 20 to 26 September, Bale will once again host the 9th Young Theatre Festival, an international artistic and scientific event taking place this year under the theme “The Art of Play and Emotion.”

The Festival brings together young artists and researchers, theatre professionals and practitioners, workshop leaders, students and participants from Croatia and abroad. The main part of the Festival programme, including around twenty workshops covering theatre and performing arts, psychology, creative therapies, and the development of food and cosmetic products, is intended for registered Festival participants.

The Festival also offers a rich evening cultural programme open to the wider public, with free admission. Throughout the Festival week, Bale will host a series of performances, exhibitions and film screenings at different locations around town, all free of charge.

The programme begins on Sunday, 20 September. Following the official opening at 5:30 pm in the Mon Perin Conference Hall, the exhibition “Anatomija nepoznatog” (Anatomy of the Unknown) by Pula-based academic painter Breza Žižović will open at 7 pm at Galerija Ulika. Created using mixed media, the series explores the boundaries between biomorphic abstraction and microanatomy, creating a kind of visual laboratory of nonexistent organisms and inner structures.

At 8 pm on Trg Tomaso Bembo, Teatar Fort Forno will present “Aktivisti”, based on a text by Mihovil Rismondo and directed by Robert Raponja, with Davor Tarbuk, Katica Šubarić and Dorian Vicić. Through humour, irony and the grotesque, the performance explores contemporary activism, the human need to be heard, and the boundary between civic engagement and despair. The music is by Davor Dedić.

On Monday, 21 September, at 7 pm on Trg Tomaso Bembo, GIG Teatar will present the children’s performance “Zamisli samo”, directed by Toni Leaković, who performs alongside Dominik Karaula. Piro and Gusko set off in search of an unimaginable treasure, encountering a mysterious island, a vampire, a mystical creature and Pan Kogulo along the way. This playful and humorous adventure explores friendship, play and the power of imagination, with the audience becoming part of their journey. The music is by Petar Eldan, while the visual identity was created by Marta Mršić.

Later that evening, at 7:45 pm on Trg Tomaso Bembo, Teatar Fort Forno will present “Čemu služi deda” by Boris Senker, directed by Robert Raponja. The cast includes Davor Tarbuk, Dominik Dolenc and Vlatka Rubil, accompanied by guitarist Toni Cukon. It is a warm and humorous story about growing up, family and the special place a grandfather holds in the lives of his grandchildren. The music was composed by Massimo Brajković, with costumes by Desanka Janković and masks and set design by Krešimir Tomac.

On Tuesday, 22 September at 7 pm, the foyer of the Mon Perin Conference Hall will host “Oltar samoće”, a performance by the Theatre Department of the Arts Academy in Split. Marijan Kukulj performs, with Davor Pavić as mentor and Roko Držislav Rebić as set designer. Set in a bar, this original monodrama explores loneliness, the need to be seen and heard, and the ability to remain alone with oneself through different characters and confessions, combining humour, the grotesque and direct interaction with the audience.

The same evening, at 9 pm in the Mon Perin Conference Hall, Selma Alispahić’s documentary “Ay, Carmela – Made in BiH” will be screened. Produced by J.U. MES and Sarajevo War Theatre SARTR, the film tells the story of the production “Ay, Carmela,” which remained in the Sarajevo War Theatre repertoire for 21 years and toured 26 cities across Bosnia and Herzegovina and 40 European cities. Through archival material, testimonies and memories, the film explores theatre during and after the war, as well as anti-fascism, resistance, friendship and the power of art.

On Thursday, 24 September at 9 pm, next to the cistern by the church in Bale, the performance “Lip je život samo ontar kad se prez straha žrtvuje” will be presented. This authorial poetic project by Robert Raponja, Massimo Brajković and Robert Pauletta features Raponja, Lara Živolić Agaj and Brajković. The performance explores the intimate world of Mate Balota, his thoughts, longings and emotions rooted in Istria, its people and life. It is a co-production of Teatar Fort Forno and Čakavski sabor Žminj, and premiered in Bale as part of this year’s Bembo Fest.

On Friday, 25 September at 7 pm at Galerija Ulika, the exhibition “fLORA” by Marko Šošić will open. Šošić is a visual artist and associate professor at the Faculty of Education and Educational Sciences at Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek. The series of watercolours was created through direct observation of living plants and flowers. Exploring the theme of transience, it connects the act of painting with gardening, observation and meditation. The exhibition follows the development of an artistic process, from earlier smaller works to larger, more powerful colour compositions.

The Festival concludes on Saturday, 26 September at 8 pm in the Mon Perin Conference Hall with the closing ceremony and presentations of the Festival workshops, followed by an after-party.

This year’s Young Theatre Festival is held under the theme “The Art of Play and Emotion,” bringing together theatre and performing arts with psychology, creative therapies, and the fields of art and health. The programme is primarily aimed at young artists and Festival participants, while the evening cultural programme opens the Festival to audiences of all generations.

The full Festival programme, information about the workshops and registration are available on the Young Theatre Festival in Bale event page.

The Festival is organised by the Academy of Arts and Culture in Osijek, Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek, the University of Split, the Municipality of Bale – Valle, the Tourist Board of Bale – Valle and Mon Perin d. d.