'Victus', the play on the armed conflict that will open the 17th edition of the Ibero-American Theater Festival in Bogotá

There is less and less time left before the countdown reaches zero and the 17th edition of the Ibero-American Theater Festival of Bogotá -FITB- begins. The curtains of dozens of stages will be open for the public to choose from among the wide selection of works that make up the program of this cultural festival and for which the capital of the country is known as the 'world theater'.

Now, with regard to the opening, a question that arises is which work will open the Festival? Well, it is a work that will be released in parallel and will run until April 3.

'Victus' will be the play in charge of inaugurating the festival at the Teatro Colón. It will be unprecedented, because in the same scenario, former FARC combatants, former paramilitaries and victims of the internal armed conflict will meet to reflect on the war and forgiveness that can be achieved despite the scars left by more than 50 years of violence, the same one that is still being experienced in many parts of the country but with other actors.

This production, made by the mind and pen of Alejandra Borrero, has already been presented in cities such as Cali and Medellín, receiving good public acceptance, not only because of the fact that her name appears in the credits, but also because of the theme of the work, focused on forgiveness through the voices of the victims themselves.

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In this regard, Claudia Del Valle, director of the Teatro Colón, explained that the play was released in 2016, within the framework of the signing of the Peace Agreement between the Government and the extinct guerrilla, “where the protagonists are people reinserted from different armed groups of the conflict in Colombia. It is a work of great value, in which the public will be able to reflect on what reconciliation means after so many decades of violence.”

It should also be noted that the project that led to the elaboration of 'Victus' - whose meaning is 'Victorious Victims' - was led by Casa E Social, which managed to bring together former members of paramilitary groups, retired military and police, former combatants of both the FARC and ELN, and victims of the conflict.

In addition, in its initial stages, it was supported by the National Center for Historical Memory, the International Organization for Migration and the United States Development Agency. The result was a profound exercise of analysis but also of reflection in which 16 people. All of them victims of war, talk about their experiences during violence, the consequences that this scourge left them and how, despite all those struggles, they manage to reduce that intensity of conflict to an act of forgiveness through the recovery of memory.

Finally, Alejandra Borrero indicated that this work is unmissable because of its meaning and because of the very fact that it will open the 2022 edition of the FITB.

“It is a clear sign that reconciliation can be done, that love changes things. If we've put something there, it's love. They have to see them, they have learned to embrace, to love. You have to see them enter 'Victus' and give the audience a hug without the public knowing them,” said the director and writer.

With regard to schedules, 'Victus' will be presented on Friday 1st and Saturday 2nd April at 7:30pm; while on Sunday the curtain will open from 5:00 p.m. The ticket office values range from 22,000 to 72,000 pesos and can be purchased on the TuBoleta website.

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