Saturday, 11th May 2024, 7:30pm
Croatian House of Culture in Sušak
MESS Scene, Sarajevo Youth Theatre & Intermezzo, Bosnia and Herzegovina
Johnna Adams: Gidion’s knot
Director: Selma Alispahić
Cast: Selma Alispahić, Džana Džanić
Set & costume designer: Edna Slipčević
Music: Zoran Predin
Design: Sanja Kulenović
Premiere: 25th May 2023
Running time: 70 minutes
In Gidion’s Knot, Gidion’s mother Corryn and his teacher Heather address all the complex issues young people face growing up today. Their meeting was prompted by Gidion’s act, after which there’s no going back and nothing can ever be the same again. Just like in the reality we live in, the search for answers starts once the problems have piled up to the point where it is impossible to get a simple answer to a simple question.
The classroom, where mother and teacher meet, becomes a stage for raising profound questions about parenting and education. What do we know and what do we think we know about our children? Do we have time to look at them – really look at them -and pay attention to what they have to say? How much can teachers really devote themselves to each individual child? The play focusses on pressing challenges the school system faces, freedom of expression, peer violence, creative freedom, the influence of teachers, the role of parents, and the responsibilities of both.
Whether the search for answers further tightens this Gordian knot or leads to its undoing, is for the audience to decide. One thing that’s certain is that this knot cannot be cut in half, but we as a society must do everything in our power to prevent it from becoming entangled. After all, it is our we are accountable for it.