Cabares cabarei

Since 1993, Zijah Sokolović has been performing the cult production CABAres CABArei, which has been staged more than 1,500 times to date and continues to delight audiences both at home and abroad.

CABAres CABArei is a cabaret-style theatrical form that critically reflects on the midlife crisis—that moment when a person, willingly or not, draws a line and begins to think about everything that has happened, everything that is happening, and everything that is yet to come.

Sokolović speaks about knowledge and experience, about everyday life, success and failure, agreements and disagreements, food, common sense, driving a car, the future, theatre as a refrigerator of mistakes, mediocrities, relatives, backwardness, reconciliation with life, fools, sex, and aging— all delivered in the unique interpretation of this legendary actor.

“…he plays with the feelings and opinions of the audience to the very limits of endurance, intertwining two great themes—so central to the subject—love and death…”
— Rapa Šuklje, Dnevnik, 2006

“…Zijah Sokolović is one of the great masters of dramatic performance, recognised for his sincere interpretation and distinctive poetic voice…”
— Nedelo, 1993

Zijah Sokolović was born in Sarajevo. In 1978 he graduated from the Academy of Dramatic Arts in Sarajevo and from the University of Sarajevo (dramaturgy). That same year he wrote and directed the monodrama The Actor Is an Actor Is an Actor, based on his acting experience. The performance achieved great success and opened the door for his work in film and television, including very popular children’s programmes. In January 1992, three months before the outbreak of the war, Sokolović left Sarajevo.