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Journalism of Courage
Serbias history of conflict finds expression in the play BrechtHardcore Machine.
SERB director Urban Andras remembers the time when NATO planes flew over his country,bombing its cities,blowing up major buildings and bridges. Actor Marta Berés was among the children who waited and watched as mothers and fathers stood in line for hours to get food and jobs. We didnt participate in the war,but we felt it everywhere. I didnt realise it then,I realise now what was taken away from me my childhood, says actor Imre Elek Mikes,26. The anger of generations of Serbs whose lives had been marred by incessant war and internal conflict following the dissolution of Yugoslavia found expression in a soul-stirring play called Brecht Hardcore Machine. The group,Kosztolanyi Dezs Theatre is the first from Serbia to perform at New Delhis Bharat Rang Mahotsav,the recently-concluded theatre festival of the National School of Drama. Serbian theatre relies largely on classics like William Shakespeare and major Serb writers,but we decided to find our own language, says Andras,40. Brecht Hardcore Machine is outwardly a story of a young working girl who enters into a world of ideology and corporeality. The narrative unfolds through a series of episodes on issues related to politics,ideology,sex,hunger,death and hunger again.
The play was the first for the group that was formed in 1999 and has travelled to Germany,Romania and Croatia among others. Over the years,we add new strands and actions. Consequently,it will always be a work in progress, says actor Arpad Meszaros. Serbia is largely peaceful now,he adds,and the arts are making a gentle comeback. In our town,if there is a play,everybody flocks to see it. It wont occur to somebody to give it a miss, says Meszaros.
