Hi, Everybody / The Invasion (UPAD)

The play ‘Hi Everybody’ will be performed as part of the ‘Upad’ theatre festival at the SCC Fabrika on 15 May. The ‘Upad’ festival is part of the Future of Europe programme, which takes place from 9 to 15 May.

The ‘Hi Everybody’ project directed by Vojkan Arsić, takes place on two levels: in virtual and real space, creating the impression of ‘augmented theatrical reality’. ‘Hi Everybody’ is a transmedia storytelling project that pushes boundaries and creates a new experience of theatre, adequate to the moment in which it is created. Using new media, mobile phones and the Internet, as well as film means to the theatre, the project brings a new theatrical experience.

‘Hi Everybody’ talks about the lives of young people in Belgrade, with a focus on the phenomenon of influencers, as a new, most desirable profession among young people around the world. The play problematizes various issues and controversies related to this new profession, starting with the question: is it a profession at all, and what consequences does working on social networks and platforms have on the psyche of the individual, as well as on society as a whole. The audience communicates with the performers live, in public space and in the performance space, but also by phone, social networks and the most famous internet platforms such as: email, viber, instagram, facebook or twitter. The performance lasts all day, and it depends on each spectator individually how much time and attention they will devote to it, before coming to the performance. Since the audience was invited to vote for their favourite heroes and their stories several times during the performance, this is an immersive theatrical play, which is based on the increased engagement of the audience itself.

The authors of the text are Milena Bogavac (who is also a playwright), Sofija Dimitrijević, Mila Jovanović and Marija Ratković, and the performers are Đorđe Galić, Nikola Pavlović, Tanja Petrović Živković and Maja Šuša. The host of the programme is Marko Panajotović and the music was done by MKDSL.
The play was produced by the Reflektor Theatre and Dorćol Placa, as part of the Liberty Project implemented within the ‘Creative Europe’ programme of the European Union. The project was supported by the ‘Jelena Šantić’ Foundation. Part of the funds for the play was collected by voluntary donations of citizens within the ‘MORE THAN THE AUDIENCE’ campaign. You can find more information at reflektorteatar.rs.

For pupils and students, admission is free to all performances, with mandatory beforehand reservation by email to upadfestival@gmail.com. The standard price of the tickets is RSD 500, and they will be available for purchase before the start of the plays at SCC Fabrika.

Photo: Marija Piroski