Poets Jovan Dučić and Magdalena Živanović, along with their forbidden love, will be the main theme of this year’s “Dučić and Maga Hours” festival, which will hold its third edition from November 27 to 29, 2025, in Bijeljina. Magdalena Živanović was the first poetess from Bijeljina to capture the heart of Jovan Dučić during his tenure as a teacher in the city
The central event of the festival will be the “Bijeljina Ball”, organized by the City of Bijeljina in cooperation with the Local Foundation Bijeljina and SKUD “Semberija”. The ball will take place at the “Drina” Hotel in Bijeljina on November 29, 2025, starting at 8:00 PM.
“Magdalena Živanović and Jovan Dučić met at a ball in this very hotel back in 1893. Using that symbolism, we are organizing this ball. Guests will enjoy a ballroom performance recreating the atmosphere of early 20th-century balls, as well as a performance by music artist Nevena Božović, known for representing Serbia at Eurovision. The proceeds from ticket sales will support young poets from Bijeljina by financing the publication of their first poetry collections, while the City of Bijeljina, as the main organizer, will cover the costs of the ball,” said Filip Božić from the Office of the Mayor of Bijeljina. He added that on Bijeljina’s cultural and tourist map, Dučić and Maga will represent a cornerstone for developing the city’s cultural and tourist potential.
The ticket price for the ball is 75 convertible marks. The ticket includes entry to the ball and a full dinner, and tickets can be purchased at the Bijeljina Cultural Center box office.