Both the actors and the audience were delighted

The great interest and enthusiasm of the Budva audience for the play "Selestina" was proved by the long and thunderous applause with which the heroes of the "tragi-comedy about Kalisto and Malibeja" were sent off on Sunday evening: Nataša Ninković, Aleksandar Đurica, Nikola Rakočević, Marta Bjelica, Nikola Šurbanović, Emir Ćatović , Anđelika Simić, Maja Stojanović and Katarina Žutić.

The dramatic adaptation of the novel of the same name by Fernando de Rojas, directed by Milan Nešković, was performed on the stage between churches in front of full stands after only a few performances and a break of about two years. The play is a co-production of JU "Grad Teatar" Budva and the Yugoslav Drama Theater from Belgrade.

"This is the first time after the corona announcement that we managed to play a show. We had the premiere here in Budva, then in Belgrade, and after only a few performances, the corona started. I didn't care now that we needed to play again. Too much time has passed, we had to restore some things, to remember... I think we succeeded, the audience tonight reacted according to how we played, so I think everything turned out as it should in the end", said Rakočević.

Actress Marta Bjelica revealed that she felt more responsibility during this performance than at the premiere.

"We haven't played in two years and we thought it was impossible to remember some things. But, as usual, when we go on stage, things start happening by themselves. I really enjoyed it. The audience watched and followed with concentration, they were in that atmosphere of ours the whole time. I can see from the reactions that they followed well because their reactions were accurate, subtle enough and active enough. I'm glad that there are finally living people in front of us," she said, adding that this piece deals with eternal theatrical themes such as love, life, death and passion.

"But the motive of suicide is also the motive of the character I portray in the play. Unfortunately, it has become a very present part of our reality," she emphasized.

The music program of the 35th edition of the Grad Theater will continue tonight with a concert by Vlatko Stefanovski. The Vlatko Stefanovski Trio will perform on the stage between the churches, at 21 p.m. Stefanovski was born in 1957 in Prilep (Macedonia), and he started playing the guitar at the age of 13. As a teenager, he founded the group "Bread and Salt", which became one of the most important names on the music scene of the former Yugoslavia. In the mid-nineties, he started a successful solo career, and later played and recorded all over the world with a large number of top artists. Recently, he has also been working on music for film, theater and ballet.