AN ORDINARY STORY

An Ordinary Story is a stage adaptation of the novel by Russian literary classic Ivan Goncharov, written in 1847. The novel was first brought to the stage in 1966 at the Sovremennik Theatre in Moscow.

Just a year later, it was performed in Belgrade at the Yugoslav Drama Theatre under the title Obična priča.

In 1969, the novel was adapted for film and broadcast on Belgrade television—several years ahead of a Russian production of the same story.

In 2015, director Kirill Serebrennikov reimagined the piece at the Gogol Center in Moscow, setting the plot in modern-day Russia. The production quickly became one of the theatre’s most celebrated and widely attended performances.

In 2023, An Ordinary Story returned to the stage in Belgrade. This new version of Serebrennikov’s work features leading Serbian actors alongside their Russian colleagues from the Gogol Center. The performance is presented in both Serbian and Russian and has been fully adapted for both Serbian and Russian-speaking audiences.

The performance includes Five Short Revelations, a vocal cycle by composer Alexander Manotskov for two sopranos, low academic female vocals, piano, and amateur synthesizer, based on the Revelation of John the Theologian.

The Moscow premiere took place on 12 March 2015 at the Gogol Center.
The Belgrade premiere followed on 31 October 2023 at the Vlada Divljan Cultural Centre.

In 2023, the socio-cultural platform DrugDrugu began its work in Belgrade. Its main goal is to foster dialogue and collaboration between the Russian-speaking community and the Serbian cultural scene. The platform united the team of producer Aleksey Agranovich and a public council of cultural figures from both Serbia and Russia.

The premiere of An Ordinary Story directed by Kirill Serebrennikov became the first theatrical event organized by DrugDrugu.