For two days, young people from the Kroniki Sejneńskie workshop, together with their colleagues from Serbia, created an animated film telling the story of the town of Vršac. The key to discovering its history—and the main motif of the film narrative—were the captivating doors that adorn nearly every building in this place. We opened them, peeked through keyholes to tell stories of how Jovan Sterija Popović sought inspiration for his books, how once the door of one synagogue allowed a view of another now-vanished one, and we looked at church towers, vineyards, and the castle overlooking the town.
Artistic supervision of this part of the work was provided by Bożena Szroeder. The visual elements were guided by Karolina Kotowska and Ksenija Konopek, animation by Piotr Myszczyński, and the unique soundtrack—crafted from the sounds of the city and collected with dedication by young guides—was created by Piotr Szroeder and Mikołaj Pol. And so, through joint effort, we managed to create a short animated film in just two days!
On Friday evening, the young participants from Kroniki Sejneńskie presented their theatrical performance, also as a way to thank our hosts for the show with which they welcomed us on our first day.
We began and ended Saturday with music: in the morning, Staszek Czyżewski, Michał Moniuszko, and Kacper Szroeder led a music workshop for the youngest children at the local kindergarten, and our visit to the town concluded with a concert by the Klezmer Orchestra of the Sejny Theater, which on Saturday evening filled the vast neo-Gothic Church of St. Gerhard with traditional Jewish music.
Another extraordinarily important journey also began: Staszek Czyżewski and Magdalena Barszcz stayed in the town to conduct music therapy workshops for the clients of Otvoreno srce sveta. We will share more about this work, which will continue throughout the week, very soon.
Meanwhile, the Tales of Coexistence have arrived in the enchanting town of Subotica, where we are warmly hosted within the welcoming walls of Klara i Rosa. Two days of intensive work lie ahead, and we will definitely share more with you soon!
text: Piotr Myszczyński
photos: Piotr Myszczyński, Agata Wasilewska, Staszek Czyżewski
Poljski institut u Beogradu / Instytut Polski w Belgradzie
