If you’re a regular visitor to L’Escala, you may have come across Slobodan Minic, a Bosnian citizen who, fleeing the war in his country, sought refuge in this Alt Empordà town and stayed there. Once there, he found work as a waiter, though he had been a famous journalist in his city in charge of Radio Sarajevo’s cultural section and the presenter of a programme called MIVION. The word is an acronym from Bosnian words meaning “we”, “you” and “they”, referring to audiences, artists and critics. Minic’s microphones recorded a range of guests, from the Bosnian poet Sidran to the film-maker Emir Kusturica, not to mention the musician Goran Bregovic. Minic lived through much of the siege of Sarajevo (from 1992 to 1996) through the radio studio, before he came to Catalonia following his family. His reminiscences now form the basis of a production that speaks not just of his life and experiences and the rise of hatred, nationalism and intolerance he witnessed, but also the existence of two young people from another generation and different cultures: the actor Masnou Marc Soler and the Bosnian translator and dance enthusiast Azra Suljic.
The central character’s voice and the on-stage presence of the two performers combine with images taken during the documentary project which, as is habitual in their shows, La Conquesta del Pol Sud carried out in Bosnia and Serbia. This material lets us put everything we see and, above all, hear on stage in context. The show tests out the power of words to evoke, although it also shows us the capacity they have for fomenting hatred. Everything happens in a stage space that sometimes connects us directly with other geographical spaces and moments in time and sometimes introduces us to the minds and most intimate thoughts of its characters.
MIVION (Ràdio Sarajevo) is a creation from La Conquesta del Pol Sud, a theatre company dedicated to producing documentary productions that take the experiences of real people as their starting point and shed light on the connections between personal experiences and collective history, in a way that makes emotions and feelings compatible with reason and analysis. Its previous productions that have premièred at the Barcelona Grec Festival include Nadia (2014), Claudia (2016) and Raphaëlle (2018).
A La Conquesta del Pol Sud production.
With support from the Catalan Institute of Cultural Enterprises and Terrassa Arts Escèniques.
In collaboration with Taula de Cultura de les Escoles Velles and Sant Esteve de Palautordera City Council, Nau Ivanow, Centre de Cultura Contemporània de Barcelona and L’Escala City Council.
Created by: Slobodan “Boban” Minic, Azra Suljic, Marc Soler, La Conquesta del Pol Sud, Performed by: Slobodan “Boban” Minic, Azra Suljic, Marc Soler, Directed by: Carles Fernández Giua, Space and video: Eugenio Szwarcer, Movement: Ariadna Montfort, Lighting design: Luis Martí, Sound design: Damien Bazin, Live video filming: Xavi Domènech, Assistant director and producer: Mònica Molins, Executive producer: Carol Murcia, Publicity and communication: Lídia Giménez, Special thanks to: Dina Minic, Goran Minic, Borchi Minic, Vera Bilbija, Sifa Suljic Photography: Alfred Mauve, Ronnie Espín
