Between the intimate and the collective, the inner scream and the outer silence, a Medea is born that we can all recognize...
So the director Diego de Brea describes the idea, the process, but also the play "Project Medea" itself, which premiered on Saturday evening at the Montenegrin National Theatre (CNP) in Podgorica. And that's really what it is - a Medea that we can all recognize.
Inspired by a well-known classic of ancient literature, Euripides With a tragedy based on the ancient myth of Medea and Jason, De Brea brought a completely fresh and provocative reading to the play and presented a contemporary story framed by the universality of classics and antiquity, necessary for us today.
Confronting the audience with an intimate, almost forensic analysis of women's pain, violence and silence, the play, instead of the (perhaps expected) classical tragic structure, presents a Medea who is not a distant myth, nor even an archetype, but one who is our contemporary, recognizable and painfully real...
The director thus, in his own way, brings a completely authentic and modern approach to Euripides' heroine, moving the plot from that mythical into our contemporary, and in fact timeless, context. Throughout the process of work, De Brea consistently broke with the traditional framework of the story, building Medea as a woman of today: layered, complex, capable, but also devastated by the experience of love that grows into destruction.
Breaking out of the framework of myth was precisely the path De Brea followed throughout the entire process of working on the play, he confirmed after the premiere, while the goal was to bring Medea closer to modern man, according to the concept of "Medea is among us", so that the audience could identify with her.
"Medea as a character is extremely layered and exciting, because throughout the play she plays out all the female archetypes. This play carries a strong dose of self-irony, which makes it even more powerful. In an hour and forty minutes on stage, we go through seven years of hell in a relationship. It is precisely in this rift between the intimate and the collective, between the inner scream and the outer silence, that the Medea that we can all recognize today is born," said De Brea.
He added that, precisely because of all this, adapting the text and placing it in today's context was of crucial importance to him.
The audience's impressions are best shown by the thunderous applause and several-minute standing ovations that greeted the ensemble of the play on the Big Stage, primarily the director himself and the leading lady of the CNP drama. Nada Vukcevic, who excelled in the not-at-all-simple role of the always challenging, anxious, and powerful Medea.
The actress embodies her heroine with lavish means, powerfully portraying both the obvious and the most subtle urges, thoughts, actions, suffering and power, all with an emotionally powerful and complex portrait of a woman who questions herself and the world, including boundaries. With her dominance on stage, Vukčević portrayed Medea in the roles of mother, partner, victim and executioner, human, feminine, convincing and natural... In all of this, the inner chaos that Medea faces is also revealed, and through the passages to arrive at the "Medea that we can all recognize".
But all of this was a challenge for the CNP drama champion, she said. The work process itself was specific because the director built each scene in a different way, using various approaches and expressive means, Vukčević explained. That is precisely why, she points out, it was necessary to find an internal link - a fastener that would connect all these fragments into a coherent and emotionally rounded whole.
"I can rank this role among the most demanding, precisely because of all the betrayal that Medea goes through. However, in a way, this is also the sweetest role for me so far! It may sound strange, because it is so complex and dark, but I play it with great enthusiasm," said Vukčević.
The rest of the cast also showed enviable artistic strength, leading the audience through a dense web of conflicts between personal pain and collective expectations, conjuring up various struggles and instincts... Together, they build a story about love that becomes obsession, about loss of identity, but also numerous other themes on a seesaw between screams and silence, which resonate deeply with the audience.
The value of the piece, it stands out Jelena Djukic, is reflected in the depiction of obsessive love, "the kind that can make a person both a victim and an executioner."
"This is not just about all of us, in one way or another, neglecting ourselves for our partners, forgetting who we are, what we are, what we feel... In the end, it is precisely through this neglect that we unconsciously destroy both ourselves and the other person. That was the starting point in working on this play. I believe that the play is also about that - about the loss of identity, about love that turns into its opposite, and the moment when only the feeling of annihilation remains," said Đukić.
Jovan Dabović He pointed out that he enjoyed working with the director throughout, but also that after a long and demanding process, the premiere was eagerly awaited.
"We started off intensively from the very beginning. After the first conversation with the director, it was clear to us what was expected of us, which made the further process much easier. We worked with dedication, delving deeply into the characters and their inner worlds, and the audience, I think, recognized and felt that," said Dabović, emphasizing that the standing ovation during the premiere night was a strong confirmation that the effort was recognized.
Young actors Luka Stankovic i Ivona Raković They describe this play and their work on it as an important turning point in their career.
"With Diego, I came to the conclusion that a lot of filth often comes out of people when they are weak. It is clear to me that some of the audience, while watching us, may activate some defense mechanism. However, I would like the audience to come without masks and prejudices, open to hearing and seeing what this play has to offer," said Stanković.
This is Raković's first professional role, so she is even more grateful that the character of Glauka was given significant space in the play.
"It was important to me to develop Glauka as a complete character, not just a supporting figure in Medea's story. It was precisely the space she was given on stage that allowed me to explore her inner world, insecurities, fears, but also motives more deeply," said Raković, whose character carries great symbolism and importance...
The play was co-produced by CNP with the Cultural Center of Bar, so after the premiere in Podgorica, the play will also be performed as part of the 38th International Festival "Bar Chronicles" on the Summer Stage of the "Vladimir Popović Španac" Cultural Center in Bar, on August 16th at 21.30:XNUMX PM, with a repeat performance the day after at the same time.
The ensemble of the play is completed by Predrag Pavićević who got the role of Cerberus, the playwright is Kata Djermati, costume designer Lina Lekovic, assistants for dramaturgy and costume design are Sergej Pavlovic i Maša Mirković. Sound processing is entrusted to Filip Radević, and the video and photo material is signed by Dusko Miljanic i Vuksa Vujošević. Dubravka Drakić is in charge of the stage speech, and the executive producer of the play is Danilo MilatovićIn addition to directing, de Brea also designed the play's concept and lighting design together with Dejan Kalezić i Happy Milošević.
Bonus video:
