Intercultural Dialogue : Good Practice Database - Compendium of Cultural Policies and T...

Page 1 of 2

previous Page | record 26 of 49 | next Page

Country(ies):
Serbia

In/Visible City
A ride on bus no. 26 by the Dah Theatre
Partners:
The Dah Theatre, Belgrade
Funding Bodies:
Ministry of Culture of Serbia, City of Belgrade (Secretariat for Culture), Rockefeller Brother's Fund (New York,
SAD), Open Society Fund Serbia, Open Society Fund Budapest, Pro Helvetia Belgrade, European Cultural
Foundation, World Bank
Project Description:
The Dah Theatre performed In/Visible City during normal bus drives of bus no 26 in Belgrade. Bus no. 26
connects the two parts of the city where the Cultural Centre Rex and the Dah Theatre Research Centre are
situated (Dorcol and Cubura). It is always quite crowded and drives across city quarters with high proportions of
immigrant and cultural minority communities, especially Roma people. The artistic action took place from 30
November to 4 December 2005, every day from 18h to 20h. Artists from the Dah Theatre, supported by young
people and musicians from the minority communities, acted like "strange passengers", playing the music of
specific ethnic communities or wearing the costumes of minorities; they performed actions and dances and told
stories or sang songs in minority languages. The performances aimed at raising the awareness of the
multiculturality of Belgrade - a facet of the city which is slowly disappearing or hiding its face behind global
billboards and the new emblems of a post-modern city geared towards consumption. The action was targeted at
the preservation the cultural heritage, especially the intangible heritage, of minorities or ethnic communities such
as the Jewish community, the gypsies, Buddhist kalmik, the Byeloussians and Albanians who live dispersed
throughout the city.
The idea to perform on a public bus was aimed at demonstrating the new contemporary spatialisation of social
relations in the city. The stage is the street, the neighbourhoods that the bus was passing through, and important
city landmarks - buildings that still keep memories of lost communities.
This project represents the Dah Theatre's contribution to the Decade of Roma Culture and was supported by
Serbian Government.
Lessons to be Learned:
The aim of the action was to provide the different minority communities in Belgrade - including those that
"disappeared" with spaces where their songs, dances, plays etc. could be performed. The action also
aimed at creating spaces for inter-ethnic dialogue among the passengers on the bus and the performers. Roundtable discussions on the In/Visible city took place in 2006 and included performances from the different minority
communities.
Target Groups:
Minority communities, general public in Belgrade

http://www.culturalpolicies.net/web/intercultural-dialogue-database.php

7/5/2015

Intercultural Dialogue : Good Practice Database - Compendium of Cultural Policies and T... Page 2 of 2

Contact Details:
DAH Theatre Research Centre
Maruliceva 8
11000 Belgrade
Serbia
Tel./Fax: +381 11 244 16 80
e-mail: dahteatar@sbb.co.yu
Web: http://www.dahteatarcentar.com
Additional Resources:
More information about the Rex B92 Cultural Centre is available from: http://www.rex.b92.net
Submitted by / Source:
Milena Dragicevic-Sesic, University of Arts, Belgrade

previous Page | record 26 of 49 | next Page

Council of Europe/ERICarts, "Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in Europe, 16th edition", 2015 | ISSN 2222-7334

http://www.culturalpolicies.net/web/intercultural-dialogue-database.php

7/5/2015