9 – 11 DECEMEBER 2024, BELGRADE
On the occasion of the International Human Rights Day, DAH Theater has been organising Prologue to the Festival Arts and Human Rights – that will be realised in June 2025.
The Prologue and the Festival are conceived as a platform for launching and presenting ideas and concepts that put and connect art and human rights in the foreground, advocate for equal human rights and building peace, as well as the development of that idea in Serbia.
THINKING PEACE
This year, we are organising the Prologue in December 9-11, on the topic Thinking Peace, which is also the topic of the Festival 2025. How to think about peace in times of numerous conflicts and what are the characteristics of peace
that is not just the absence of war, are some topics that we think about through art. We have the opportunity to talk online with female artists from Palestine and Lebanon about their artistic practice in war zones. The “Art and
Human Rights” festival with its Prologue affirms art in the process of raising awareness about the culture of human rights and encourages the development of permanent care and commitment in the fight against human rights violations.
DETAILED PROGRAM
9.DEC
PAROBROD, 20:00
SHE. AHEAD OF HER TIME
SHE. AHEAD OF HER TIME is an original multimedia installation, which integrates exhibition, live performance, installation, video works, and photography. This work is inspired by women who were the pioneers in their fields in Serbian society. Even though their achievements were significant for our culture, their work is still not sufficiently known and visible in Serbian cultural and historical heritage.
Performed by: Ivana Milenović Popović, Milica Petrović, Zoran Vasiljević, Ljubica Damčević, Snežana Arnautovic Stjepanović; Video work: Jelena Rubil; Installation: Dijana Mitrović; Art Photography: Nemanja Maraš; Direction: Jadranka Andjelić and Dijana Milošević.
10.DEC
PAROBROD 17:00
Theater workshop with young people: What does positive peace mean?
As part of the HOPE Project, he workshop for young people (16 to 30 years old) wants to inspire young to actively participate in building peace through art. The project is supported by the EU Erasmus+ program. DAH Theater is realising it as a leading partner with partner organisations from Greece (Action Sinergy, Aeroplio – Topos Allou Theatre), Montenegro (Prona), Bosnia and Herzegovina (World Vision BHFoundation) and with Kosovo (Artpolis).
19:00 Lecture by historian Dubravka Stojanović: How to think peace in times of conflict?
Dubravka Stojanović is a full professor at the History Department of the Faculty of Philosophy in Belgrade. She teaches general modern history and the history of globalization. Her research interests include the history of ideas, the problems of democratization and modernization of Serbia, the history of Belgrade and the an analysis of history textbooks.
11.DEC
parobrod 19:00
Gaza Monologues – stage reading by DAH Theatre
The Gaza Monologues are testimonies written by ASHTAR youth in 2010, after the first war on the Gaza Strip and 2023/24. They are highlighting the horrors, hopes and resilience of the courageous Gazans to a wider audience,
bringing out the voices of children and people in Gaza. Edited and produced by ASHTAR Theater from Palestine, as a part of the Palestine Peace Initiative.
Performers: Ivana Milenović Popović, Milica Petrović, Zoran Vasiljević; Vocal: Ljubica Damčević; Object/performance: Katarina Drenjanin; Directing: Jadranka Anđelić, Milošević Dijana.
Directed by Iman Aoun and Yousef Nateel, Palestine [20″] The film follows what happened to the young writers of the Gaza Monologues, in the besieged Gaza over ten years. It is a reminder of the importance of hope and revitalises solidarity among people through art. Documentary was nominated at the Nocturna Online Brooklyn Film Festival for Best Director, and in Singapore, the film won the World Film Carnival Award in the Documentary category.
20:20 Film Jogging
Directed by Hanane Hajj Ali [20″]. The film interweaves her daily routine of jogging with key moments of her play Jogging, which presents a radical challenge to the stereotypes and prejudices of the global perception of Arab women. It depicts the intricate and subtle connection between Hanane’s personal drama and the successive tragedies that continue to unfold in Beirut, Lebanon and the world.
Moderated by Dijana Milošević and Jadranka Anđelić, DAH Theater
Iman Aoun, award-winning actress, director, educator and artistic director of ASHTAR Theater. Iman addresses socio-political issues in Palestine to raise awareness among audiences and initiate social change. Since 2004, she has worked with community groups using Theater of the Oppressed techniques and led specialized training workshops for theater students regionally and internationally. She was the initiator and the driving force behind major international undertakings such The Gaza Monologues (2010) (2023), ASHTAR International Youth Theatre Festival (2012), and The Syrian Monologues (2015). As a recognized feminist, she became the Palestine Coordinator of the One Billion Rising Campaign (2014), which is a global initiative by V-Day, fighting violence against women. And Letters to Gaza a solidarity response to the genocide in Gaza (2024).
Hanane Hajj Ali is a leading cultural and artistic figure in Lebanon and the Arab world. In addition to her work as an actress, playwright, writer, and director since 1978, Hanane teaches theater studies at Saint Joseph University in Beirut. Hanane is also the founder and board member of several organizations such as Cultural Resource – Al Mawred Athakafi, Action for Hope, and Ettijahate, Independent Culture. In 2020, Hanane was awarded the LPTV Gilder/Coigny International Theater Award by the League of Professional Theater Women (LPTV) in New York, USA. Her film “Jogging” transcends the Lebanese Bermuda triangle of taboos: religion, politics and sex, and presents a radical challenge to the stereotypes and prejudices, affecting the global perception of the Arab women.
FESTIVAL TEAM
Dijana Milošević – Festival concept and program
Ivana Milenović Popović – Festival concept and program
Jadranka Anđelić – Artistic collaboration on the program
Nataša Novaković – Production manager
Dragana Živanović – Festival financial manager
Meri Zec – Digital marketing
Tanja Rapp –Festival PR
Milica Petrović – Audience development, organization
Nata Korsky – Photographer
DAH Theatre thanks to Cultural Centre Parobrod
Supported by: Ministry of Culture RS, IMPACT platform, Erasmus+ program