Through a co-creative process, 10 young women from across Serbia \u2013 of different ages, interests and backgrounds \u2013 delved into their memories to depict what it\u2019s like to grow up as a girl in Serbia through \u201cGirls\u201d, a production of the socially engaged theatre Reflektor that was coordinated by youth organization E8, with the support of UN Women, under a European-Union funded project.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\nAs light engulfs the stage, 10 young women emerge with towel-wrapped hair, donning fuzzy heart-decked bathrobes and colourful knee-high socks, prepared to use theatre to share their experiences and observations about growing up in a patriarchal society.<\/p>\n
Humorous but heart-breaking; deeply intimate but also political \u2013 the play uncovers the various barriers, traditions and gender roles girls face in Serbia, as its 10 protagonists explore the thin line between the personal and the political.<\/p>\n
\u201cGirls\u201d was created through a months-long, artistic, educational and research process as a result of which these co-authors and performers tell their personal stories, in their own name.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis play was created using a method that we at Reflektor Theatre call \u2018theatre as youth work\u2019. We worked with young girls that were not professional actors. We went through an educational process related to the topics of gender equality, masculinity and violence prevention. At the same time, we rehearsed and wrote the text jointly, which resulted in a dramaturgical shaping of their personal stories, experiences and observations,\u201d explains the director and dramaturge of the play, Milena Bogavac.<\/p>\n
All the stories are authentic, true and special. They show us what it\u2019s like being a girl of a different nationality; what is expected of a middle-born child; what happens when your father is at war; what it\u2019s like when your mother is a feminist; as well as menstrual poverty and many other situations that provide unusual insight and tap into deeply personal childhood memories. They are \u2018her\u2019-stories to which many girls can relate, in Serbian society and worldwide.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe girls, it turned out, connected with each other through conversation\u2026 and a large part of our joint work involved long, moderated conversations about our upbringing, ambitions, fears, hopes, views on violence, feminism and the like,\u201d explains Bogavac. \u201cAfter we chose the co-authors, at a multi-day audition that included training aimed at empowering girls and young women, we met and talked for two months. We shared stories, experiences and tried to act them out through various improvisation exercises. From these games, our play was born.\u201d<\/p>\n
One of the protagonists, 21-year-old Milena Peri\u0107, says this process enabled her to go back to childhood, revisit and uncover experiences buried beneath piles of memories.<\/p>\n
\u201cI got to know myself better. I questioned my upbringing and came to conclusions that helped me to be a better version of myself today,\u201d she explains. \u201cI also got to know other girls, not just as they are now, but I got a glimpse of how they grew up, which made me feel like we grew up together \u2013 like we\u2019ve known each other our whole lives.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her colleague, 20-year-old Lena Vujovi\u0107 emphasizes self-recognition as the main result of this experience: \u201cIt was not only about penetrating your depths and something that used to torment you, but it was about sharing with others without fear of judgment. I think we lack such safe places. It was not easy to discover new things about ourselves and others every day for two months. That was the biggest challenge but also the most significant experience we got from this play. When you bare yourself in front of someone you don\u2019t know in such a short time, it\u2019s quite a challenge but it\u2019s also magical and rewarding. I would like to tell all girls and boys not to look at all the obstacles that come their way as a reason to give up, but as a signpost for future steps.\u201d<\/p>\n
The production of \u201cGirls\u201d is a central activity in the \u201cSupergirls\u201d project that began in February 2022 and lasted for 12 months, which aimed to deconstruct gender stereotypes and constructs that girls and young women face while growing up, to empower young women through education and cultural production, as well as to inform the general public about the challenges women and girls face in a patriarchal society.<\/p>\n
\u201cGirls watch it because it sends them a message that they are not alone. But boys also watch it to better understand girls. In just two months, we performed \u2018Girls\u2019 10 times, in front of full halls, and that is really encouraging,\u201d says Bogavac.<\/p>\n
The main idea of the play is to empower girls and young women to be allies and support each other, but also to send them the message that girls can do anything, that all girls in the world are worthy, brave, smart and all deserve to grow up in a safe and secure environment.<\/p>\n
The play continues to convey the message that \u201cfeminism is not an ugly word\u201d and is not a \u201cfight against men\u201d, but a fight against violence and for equal rights for men and women.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n