12 Feb Belgrade in March Celebrates Samuel Beckett, Neil Jordan and Stephen Rea
Oscar winner Neil Jordan, acclaimed actors Stephen Rea and Ruth Negga, along with numerous directors, comedians, musicians, writers and visual artists from Ireland, will present their work at the 14th Belgrade Irish Festival (BIF), the largest event dedicated to contemporary Irish culture in the region, from March 12 to 21.
This year, BIF connects two eras of Irish culture: the contemporary scene, represented by leading Irish film and theatre artists, and the legacy shaped half a century ago by Samuel Beckett, one of the most influential writers of 20th-century Irish and European literature.
Beckett’s legacy runs through all segments of this year’s festival programme. Audiences will have the opportunity to see an exclusive theatre piece inspired by Beckett’s poetry at Atelje 212, the theatre that introduced Beckett to Belgrade audiences 70 years ago, as well as 19 films based on his works and two exhibitions by Serbian and Irish artists inspired by his philosophy.
“This year marks the 70th anniversary of the premiere of Beckett’s Waiting for Godot at Atelje 212 in 1956, which was the first staging of Beckett in Eastern Europe at the time — a revolutionary cultural event that introduced Yugoslav audiences to the theatre of the absurd. Beckett himself stayed in Belgrade then, and that moment also marked the beginning of Atelje 212. I am delighted that BIF is opening the celebration of the theatre’s 70th anniversary,” says Jas Kaminski, founder and director of the Belgrade Irish Festival.
At Atelje 212, on March 15 and 16, Stephen Rea and Ruth Negga will perform a theatre piece based on Beckett’s poetry, directed by one of Ireland’s most prolific directors, Alan Gilsenan. Stephen Rea is renowned for performing Beckett’s works and is one of the few actors today who worked directly with the great writer. His stage partner in this performance, Ruth Negga, an Irish-Ethiopian actress, has been nominated for an Academy Award and won an Emmy Award in 2017.
Irish Film Week will highlight the work of renowned Irish director Neil Jordan and actor Stephen Rea, a duo with the longest-standing collaboration in Irish cinema. Both artists will be awarded the Golden Seal of the Yugoslav Film Archive for their contribution to film art, and audiences will have the opportunity to watch the classic The Crying Game, Jordan’s 1992 Oscar-winning screenplay, starring Stephen Rea and Forest Whitaker.
Irish Film Week will open with the film Christy, winner of the Grand Prize for Best Film in the Generation 14plus program, a section focused on the lives and experiences of young people at the Berlinale festival. The film also received the Best Irish Film award at last year’s Galway Fleadh, Ireland’s most prestigious film festival. Christy is an emotionally charged, socially engaged drama about an eighteen-year-old who leaves his foster home and begins living with his older brother.
The BIF film programme is also marked by Beckett. For the first time, audiences will be able to experience the eleven-hour programme Beckett on Film: 19 x 19, in which 19 directors bring 19 of Beckett’s works to the screen. This year, BIF will also offer midnight film screenings and a surprise film for festival-goers.
The event opening BIF on March 12 is also dedicated to Samuel Beckett’s legacy: a collective exhibition of Serbian and regional artists titled Siege in the Room will be presented at Bioskop Balkan, featuring, among others, Aleksandar Denić, one of Europe’s leading contemporary scenographers.
Festival-goers can also look forward to the best club night of the year at Silosi, with guest Donal Dineen, a legendary Irish music editor and DJ, radio pioneer since the 1990s, known for his sets blending afrobeat, Latin, folk, and contemporary electronic music into an irresistible dance experience.
Belgrade will also welcome two fantastic comedians, Martin Beanz Ward and the “beloved Irish billionaire” Reggie. During the festival, street artist James Early will paint a 180-square-meter mural at Belgrade Port.
Northern Irish writer Mary Ethna Black, who lives between London and Beograd, has a forthcoming memoir Splav – My Family, a Belgrade barge and other adventures (Abacus, January, 2027). With other celebrities, she will read a chapter called the Senjak Chicken Society. We will also get to know the work of writer Ben Keatinge, who will spend a month in Belgrade on a literary residency organised by Literature Ireland.
Tickets for all BIF events with paid entry are on sale from today (Thursday, February 12) at Tickets.rs.
Ambassador of Ireland in Serbia: Belgrade Irish Festival Deepens Ireland–Serbia Friendship
The newly established Embassy of Ireland in Serbia has expressed strong support for this year’s festival edition.
His Excellency, Kevin Colgan, Ambassador of Ireland to Serbia, said:
“The Belgrade Irish Festival has grown into an important platform for presenting contemporary Irish culture to audiences in Serbia and serves as a vital bridge between our two countries. As the first resident Irish ambassador to Serbia, it is a particular pleasure to see such a vibrant celebration of Irish creativity in Belgrade. This year’s programme brings together leading artists from film, theatre and literature, confirming the richness and diversity of the contemporary Irish cultural scene. I look forward to continuing our successful cooperation and deepening the ties and friendship between Ireland and Serbia in the years to come.”
The Belgrade Irish Festival is the only festival of contemporary Irish culture in the region and, in terms of programme scope, is recognized at the European level, just after festivals in London and Paris. For 14 years, it has introduced local audiences to contemporary Irish culture and art. To date, around 200 Irish artists and collectives have visited Belgrade, over 350 festival events have been organized, and more than 85,000 visitors have attended. The festival is supported by the Embassy of Ireland, Irish Film International, Screen Ireland, Culture Ireland, Literature Ireland, as well as numerous cultural institutions in Belgrade. The festival’s founder is Jas Kaminski, an art lover and Irishman who loves Belgrade and has organized this festival since 2013.