Belgian play Prometheus Landscape II by famous Jan Fabre will open the the 45th Bitef (Belgrade International Theater Festival) on September 13, the Belgrade City Assembly, which founded BITEF, announced on Tuesday.

A total of 15 plays from eight countries will be performed at the festival until September 23, the organizers said. City Council member in charge of Culture Vesna Marjanovic said at a press conference that this prestigious festival and one of the most important in the country has a special significance for the cultural life of Belgrade and Serbia.

Despite the obstacles brought by financial constraints, BITEF each year manages to bring the best performances of important artists, she said, adding that the festival this year has a regional in addition to its international dimension. Artistic Director Jovan Cirilov said that the subtitle of this year On a Hot Tin Roof alludes to the cult show Cat on a Hot Tin Roof and means hot topics in the performances at BITEF.

Cirilov thanked the Embassy of Belgium which has enabled the public in Belgrade to see again a work by the famous Fabre. Another Belgian performance - Gardenia, directed by the famous Alain Platel, who will come to BITEF for the first time, will be performed at the closure of the festival.

This provocative play deals with the attitude towards transvestites in a conservative environment. Cirilov also announced the participation again of the famous director Frank Kastorf with the Berlin performance of To Moscow! To Moscow! and of Heiner Goebbels with a play from Lausanne.

Selector Anja Susa said that the Region in Focus program with five Serbian and two productions each from Slovenia and Croatia will be part of the main program.