Many travelers still remember how, during the Cold War, this capital of the former Yugoslavia was one of the more prosperous and liberal places behind the Iron Curtain, whose inhabitants liked to boast that their passport garnered respect in both the Eastern and Western blocs. But then came the death of longtime leader Josip Broz Tito, the fall of communism, the rise of the super-nationalist Slobodan Milosevic and, during the 1990s, the all-out calamity of the wars in Bosnia and Kosovo.
Now relegated to the capital of Serbia rather than the sprawling nation of Yugoslavia that once encompassed a large area of the Balkans, Belgrade is still "in recovery." But as someone who traveled through the country in 1991, and watched events there first-hand in 1996 and 1997 -- and who has subsequently met many artists who fled their home and settled in Chicago -- I can vouch for the toughness and resilience of the Belgradians, and for their innate theatricality. (During the student uprisings over stolen local elections in late 1996, many in the city opened their windows as the state-run nightly TV news was broadcast, banging loudly on pots and pans in an attempt to drown out the lies.) True, the city might still be a spot favored primarily by the Lonely Planet crowd that prides itself on offbeat destinations. But one thing is certain; it is never boring.
Though much of the city has a grimy Soviet-era quality, with ugly post-World War II buildings in the vast areas of the city that were heavily bombed (first by the Germans, then by the Allies), just enough of the majesty of earlier centuries exists in the center to lend some charm. You can find it on Prince Michael Street (the elegant pedestrian mall where even in the darkest times the women looked chic and shoe stores were up-to-the-minute); near the National Theatre; around the handsome Parliament building; at the history-layered Belgrade Fortress. Downtown's Republic Square holds memories of turbulent recent times. And the nearby Hotel Moskva, with its Old World tea room -- where I often went to escape the riot police and chaos of the streets -- will always be a personal favorite.
Tatjana Radisic, one of many Belgrade-trained theater artists who have forged careers in Chicago during the past decade or so, is an exceptionally talented costume designer who has worked at the Goodman, Steppenwolf and Redmoon theaters. Her designs can now be seen at Northlight Theatre (where the all-American "Inherit the Wind" is playing), and will soon be on view at Victory Gardens Theatre (where the musical fairy tale, "The Snow Queen," will debut).
She is now in Belgrade; I asked her to e-mail me impressions to update my own.
Radisic wrote that the fall colors are beautiful but "underneath this romantic image it seems to me that the country is boiling."
On the other hand, cultural life is alive and well, with the 22nd Belgrade International Jazz Festival, the 46th International Book Fair, the 40th International Theater Festival and the Sixth Biennial of Stage Design (where Radisic's U.S. work was nominated for an award), have all taken place in recent months. The old theaters are still working -- and still receive government funding -- though fewer and fewer young people go.
Meanwhile, Prince Michael Street remains "a great catwalk," writes Radisic. "It's full of kids, street singers and musicians, and, as always beautiful young people. The dominant street fashion is tight jeans and small, tight winter jackets. They all look very fashionable, but somehow uniform. It's the new generation, born in the 1980s and '90s -- growing up during the wars, sanctions, hyperinflation, black market, protests."
This generation did not travel abroad and has a Hollywood-distorted image of wealth and fame, said Radisic.
"It's all part of the Turbo-Folk culture that developed during Milosevic's time -- a mixture of money, sex, fast cars, tough guys, arms and bimbos."
http://www.suntimes.com/entertainment/weiss/114481,TRA-News-Belgrade29.article
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