"With Cvejen" as a memorial for the theater man, against the art of oblivion

Epithets for him are many, so are the stories. But there is a point where they also join his mission: Branko Cvejić lived for the theater, he raised it from nothing, he broke barriers because above all he looked for the human being in himself and in others. The monograph is simply titled "Sa Cvejom" (Me Cvejen). Inaugurated on Saturday in "Polip", it is described as a memorial to the man of the theater, against the art of oblivion.

"With Cvejen" is beyond the monograph. The entire life of the Serbian actor Branko Cvejic is summarized in one publication. It is a life dedicated to the theater and beyond. It is a document about the artist, whose traces today echo in the field of culture and art. The cooperation with the "Oda" theater in the capital, which organized the promotion of the monograph within the "Polip" festival on Saturday, is also confirmed. The inauguration was one of the main events of the second day of the festival, which this year, in the 14th edition, is formatted as "Polip - Prishtina International Creative Hub". 

The book consists of a series of texts by different authors, collaborators and friends of the actor and the former director of what was then the Yugoslav drama theater. Their memories lead to the time when Cvejić would enter the world of art, through performances in his theater and in the well-known series "Grlom u jagode" and until the last roles. 

But there are also texts by the actor Cvejić himself. They are speeches from festival openings, marking theater anniversaries and those at other events in various institutions. 

In the promotion of the monograph "Me Cvejen" (Sa Cvejom) on Saturday afternoon, it was said that the actor often visited Pristina. He came with work, for the theater. In the capital of Kosovo, he would play in "The Backward" under the direction of Andrej Nosov. He had played in the show together with actor Alban Ukaj.

According to Jeton Neziraj, the playwright and director of the "Multimedia" center, which organizes "Polip", the play was given about ten years ago and was one of the first shows in the Serbian language. 

"It was the first time I saw him on stage, then we met and accompanied him to several other shows. Anyway, it was enough to see that apart from an exceptional actor, it is also about a man who has been a pillar of this regional theater cooperation, as he has also worked with other directors in the region", said Neziraj. 

While he considered the monograph a miracle in itself, he remembered the last meeting with the actor Branko Cvejic. The reason was the show "The Handke Project" at "Bitef Theater" in Belgrade. Neziraj said that with his participation, Cvejic revealed another side of him: that of a fighter's supporter. 
"The last time we met in Belgrade was two years ago, maybe a month before he died. We were preparing for a rather problematic show, 'The Handke Project' at the 'Bitef' theater where the presence of the audience was almost a support for our presence there. It was no longer just as a public presence for a theatrical act, just to see it, but as political support since the nature of the performance was problematic. Really, that presence at a time when he was not in a very good physical condition, I was extremely impressed and I think that episode best explains his nature", said the playwright Neziraj, showing the occasion when "The Handke Project" led dust in Serbian nationalist circles.  

Beka Vuço, editor and co-publisher of the monograph "Sa Cvejom", started her speech about the book with a short biography that the late actor had written himself. He said it was his introduction when people asked him about his work. 

"I was born in the first part of the last century. I have played in hundreds of plays, in various theater productions, I have shot as many films and TV series. I was for 15 years the assistant to the wonderful director of the Theater of Yugoslavia... and then I directed it myself. Now in the rest of my life I am only an actor", Vuço quoted from the biography. Cvejic died on July 26, 2022 in Belgrade. 

Vuço has valued the generation in which the actor Cvejic was a part. He said that he had defended the values ​​of the theater until his retirement. He estimated that he had protected it like his home by removing the dust when it was completely destroyed. He was quoted as saying that this was "one of the biggest tasks he has had in his life". 

"First of all, he was that new generation of actors who, sometime in the 70s, entered through the big door of the Yugoslav Theater known as 'Bojani's Babies' at the time of Bojan Stupica, well-known director, scenographer, architect. He was also the director of the Yugoslav Theater and he considered that in addition to a number of big and important theater names, the ensemble should be renewed. This is how he brought a whole new class, in addition to this, some actors from the academy", said Vuço, director of the "My Balkans" foundation, which published the monograph. 

It includes writings from theater people and not only. These are the words of his many friends. Jeton Neziraj's text is also there. At the end is the fact sheet with the data for all his performances from the first day he played until the last. 

The book is divided into eight parts. According to the publisher, this coincides with the 160th anniversary of the life of the actor Cvejic. There are also speeches on the occasion of the funeral and those at the commemoration. They are included in the "In memoriam" section. It has been announced that the monograph is illustrated with XNUMX photographs from private life and from theater, film and television. 

Cvejić had played in a large number of films, in over a hundred radio dramas that were mostly filmed at Radio Belgrade. He has also shot a large number of television roles, of which the role of Banet Bumbari from the series "Grlom u jagode" is the most well-known. 

The colleague of the late actor, Svetozar Cvetkovic, said that Cvejic lived for the theater beyond the Yugoslav Drama Theatre. It did not exceed what was opposed to the mission of the theater. 

"At the moment when he was the director, I also became the director of 'Atelje...'. In Belgrade there was great antagonism between these two theaters and very great competition. Cveja and I knew about this kind of antagonism. There were actors who didn't even want to play in 'Atelje 212' and vice versa. Then together we made an agreement, a cooperation pact. I had to play a role in the Yugoslav Drama Theater and that's how we reconciled, just as our two houses reconciled", said actor Svetozar Cvetkovic, former director of the "Atelje 212" theater in the Serbian capital. 

He said that people tend to forget, as many famous actors have been forgotten. But that, according to him, the monograph is a kind of memorial. 

"We are expected to forget and move forward, to work and fight with blood for the future. It is the art of forgetting, while Beka has built a great memorial not only for Branko Cvejic, but also for those people we have forgotten. A great debt to our craft. A man who has built the theater from nothing, from the ground up to the best performances that could be thought of in the Yugoslav Drama Theater", said the actor Cvetkovic at the inauguration, where the actress Branka Petric, the widow of the great actor Bekim Fehimu, but who was absent for health reasons.  

The second day of "Polip" continued with the performance "Urotnici", a production of "Krokodil" from Belgrade in collaboration with "My Balkans" from New York, with poetic readings and music.