Yugoslavia – a country that no longer exists. Perished in wars between brothers in the 90s. For the second time since 1914, Sarajevo was at the center of a seemingly never-ending conflict that lives on in the present. Many people fled to Berlin – on the run, in search of work, of another life. How do these Berliners experience these conflicts today? Here the children of the victims of war crimes live alongside the children of the perpetrators. How do they interact?
Common ground is the substance we share, a foundation on which to stand. In her new project Yael Ronen brings together performers who came to Berlin from Belgrade and Sarajevo, Novi Sad and Prijedor. What is their Common Ground? The play will be developed collectively based on a trip to Bosnia, and on encounters with experts and the family members of the protagonists. The theater becomes a safe space for discussing terms like guilt and atonement, forgiveness and forgetting, while stereotypes, prejudices and conflicting narratives gleefully collide.
Common Ground is sponsored by the Capital Cultural Fund Berlin.
Photo: Esra Rotthoff