'Education Through Play': Dramaturgy workshops with Tanja Šljivar

(Patria) - Dramaturgy workshops with Tanja Šljivar will begin in Banja Luka on March 28, 2019, as part of the Nevid Teatar project 'Education Through Play', which is being implemented through the joint UN project: 'Dialogue for the Future: Promoting Social Cohesion and Diversity in BiH'.

The best original dramatic texts were selected from the completed Nevid Teatar competition for original dramatic texts: 'Treasure Under the Roof' by Sara Velaga (24) from Jajce, 'My Homeland' by Nedim Puriš (21) from Zenica, and 'Where Did Beauty Hide?' (23) by Milica Malešević from Banja Luka.

To questions about their impressions, dramaturgy workshops with Tanja Šljivar, and what the 'Education Through Play' project means to them, the young people responded:

'Recognition from the acclaimed dramaturge Tanja Šljivar is very significant for me as a writer who tried dramatic writing for the first time. The 'Education Through Play' project is a huge step forward for me in bringing culture closer to all children, regardless of their place of residence, and in returning the focus to culture in an innovative way.' – Sara Velaga.

'I am delighted that my dramatic text was chosen among the best and that I will be working with dramaturge Tanja Šljivar, and I believe that our dramaturgy workshops will be very successful, creative, and high-quality. 'Education Through Play' represents an important project for me, intended for children, youth, and the entire community, with a clear goal of educating the youngest first and emphasizing education and developing awareness that diversity is a wealth, not an obstacle to the further development of society,' Nedim Puriš.

'The fact that something I wrote will bring smiles to many children makes me indescribably happy, proud, and above all, grateful to Nevid Teatar for giving us the opportunity in the first place. When I found out that our plays were reviewed by Tanja Šljivar, I felt real stage fright. I look forward to the upcoming workshops and believe in the success of our project because we are doing it with love,' Milica Malešević.

The selected authors will have the opportunity, within the dramaturgy workshops, through mutual communication and cooperation, and under the mentorship of Tanja Šljivar, to create one joint performance collage from the three texts, which will further serve as a basis for an interactive – educational play for children aged three to 11, and which will be performed in Bugojno, Doboj, Istočno Sarajevo, Kiseljak, Kreševo, Mostar, Sarajevo, Travnik, Tuzla, Usora, and Banja Luka by the end of August 2019. The dramaturgy workshops will be held from March 28 to 30, 2019, at the Nevid Teatar office in Banja Luka.

To the question of what the 'Education Through Play' project and the drama workshops with young creatives mean to her, the multi-award-winning playwright and Director of Drama at the National Theatre in Belgrade, Tanja Šljivar, replied:

'The 'Education Through Play' project by Nevid Teatar is significant for the decentralization of culture and for enabling access to cultural, educational, and entertainment content for the youngest audience – both in larger urban centers and in smaller communities where this type of theatrical event is of particular importance. I have been following the work of Nevid Teatar for years, and as this is our first collaboration, I am sure it will yield good results, especially because we share the same aesthetic and ethical values, we think similarly about theater, and we are currently looking in the same direction – towards the applause of numerous children's hands. As for the workshops and working with young writers on the text, it currently represents an opportunity for me to learn, to learn anew and together – from each other. The workshop format allows for a more fluid exchange, the goal of which will be the creation of a performance text, whose authorship will be collective and shared. One of the few things I have the opportunity to do in my hometown speaks to similar sensibilities, mine, Nevid Teatar's, the young authors', and ultimately, the shared desire for communication with the youngest audience in 11 cities in BiH.'

By implementing the 'Education Through Play' project, Nevid Teatar will enable children and young people who are daily exposed to educational problems, ethnic and other forms of segregation or discrimination in schools, to learn and deepen their knowledge about cultural diversity in BiH and the importance of lifelong learning, upbringing, and education through play and dramatic educational forms, and to connect with colleagues from other parts of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

'Education Through Play' by Nevid Teatar is one of the 24 selected projects funded within the joint UN project: 'Dialogue for the Future: Promoting Social Cohesion and Diversity in BiH'.

The joint project 'Dialogue for the Future' is a joint initiative of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the United Nations. United Nations agencies: UNICEF, UNESCO, and UNDP, in cooperation with the Presidency of BiH, are jointly implementing the project, which aims at long-term peacebuilding and improving social cohesion in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The 'Dialogue for the Future' project is funded by the United Nations Peacebuilding Support Office/Peacebuilding Fund (PBF).