The twelfth International festival of high school theatre Juventafest, organized by the “Medija-Art” Association, offered the audience a total of eight plays in the pre-festival and competition programme, with an emphasis on issues of human freedom, violence, the right to personal choice and diversity. One of the performances addressing the deep layers of the problem of violence against women, “Why did you wake up your husband?”, by the Drama Club Catholic School Centre St. Francis, Tuzla Gymnasium, was performed yesterday at the Centre for culture and youth in Municipality Centre Sarajevo.

The play, inspired by a real event and directed by Ivana Petrović, is used by the actors to show that the stage is not only for performance but also a call to action and change.

After the play from Tuzla, performed in a packed hall at the Centre for culture and youth, which was rewarded with prolonged applause from the audience, the Sarajevo Youth Theatre was filled to capacity for the play “Spring Awakening” by the Drama Kids Academy Sarajevo. The most massive play at this year’s Juventafest was directed by Arma Tanović-Branković, Edis Bilić and Saša Krmpotić. The story centres on several high school students whose lives end tragically due to imposed societal norms of behavior. The audience also rewarded the actors of the Sarajevo group with long-lasting applause and ovations.

The plays performed on Monday, September 9, closed the competition programme. The decision on the Grand Prix and the Special Jury Award will be made by actress Ksenija Pajić, dramatist and professor Dragan Komadina and actor Benjamin Bajramović.

During the ceremonial event at 7:30 PM September 10, at the Sarajevo Youth Theatre, before the announcement of the winners, there will be a presentation of workshops by all festival participants. Divided into groups, over five days, they attended workshops under the mentorship of experts, including “Character Masks”, “Dance Workshop”, ” Improv Workshop – theatresports or diversity in the community”, “Puppetry Workshop” and “Musical Theatre Workshop”.

The closing ceremony of the 12th Juventafest will be preceded by the traditional parade of participants, starting at 6:00 PM, from the Eiffel’s Bridge at Skenderija to the Sarajevo Youth Theatre, accompanied by the “Sarajevo Drum Orchestra.”