| How we survived the beginning of the century
5 : Tena Stivicic, playwright I've been domesticated in London, and the world is on the verge of collapse Two events that established this decade took place at the outset. The first was the controversial victory of George W. Bush in 2000 and the second the attack on the Twin Towers in 2001. These events and their consequences, the invasion of Afghanistan and Iraq, a new wave of religious fundamentalism, the sacrifice of freedom of speech because of "Peace at home," immigration policies of many European countries, the paranoia of terror and obsession with surveillance and control that is flooding Europe, especially Great Britain where I live, are all phenomena that have crept into the smallest pores of everyday life and dictate its course and its circumstances. Changes in our lifestyles are due to the development of the IT era. The availability and distribution of inventions like the internet and Skype, make an accelerated life easier, especially for the new generation of economic nomads and people like me, living away from family and old friends, whose suitcases are permanently standing in the corridor. On the other hand, we have to be constantly online. living and taking in all the information currently available, leading us into a state of general insensitivity to human suffering. And while it is increasingly calling our privacy into question, the endless virtual space expands uncensored, with anonymous aggression. Hate speech has been given endless new premises for breeding. I think we all, at least in the developed part of the world, including Croatia, have became the victims of tabloid aesthetic in this decade, which spilled has over into the field of ethics and administers the general moral codes of our society. In this decade, climate changes have been the centre of attention, and the general impression of the progress of the world in all aspects from the late 20th century onwards, crystallized the realization that humanity is in crisis. First, there was talk of the planet, but now it is already clear that it isn't just our planet that has to survive. but also our civilization. For me, the decade marked the beginning of my career as a writer, beginning with my play Can't Escape Sundays (Nemres pobjec od nedjelje) at ZKM (Zagreb Youth Theatre). Especially dear to me are performances of The Two (Dvije) at Atelje 212 in Belgrade, Fireflies (Krijesnica) in ZKM and Wiesbaden, Fragile in Mladinsko Theatre, Ljubljana (Slovenia) and the Arcola Theatre in London and Drunken Nights of 1918 (Pijane noci 1918) at the Ulysses Theatre in Brijuni. In 2003 I began writing a column in Zaposlena, which today is inseperable from me. Probably the most important event for me was going to London in 2003. It gave me experience in every sense, shaped and determined my life and it was there I finally grew up and in 2005 met my partner. Also In 2003 an Irish poet, I met at at a party in Shepherd's Bush, said it takes seven years for London to accept the stranger, the foreigner. At that time me it sounded to me surreal and pathetic. But this winter, my sixth year of living in London, I suddenly feel the friction between me and this city has suddenly decreased and that life is more gentle and everything glides along easily. Globus Magazine 5th JANUARY 2010 Translated from Croatian by this website. |
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