Mara and Kata Return to Kazerma for Their Jubilee 50th Performance
Dubrovnik's most sought-after kundurice return to the festival stage, with tickets for all performances already sold out.
Dubrovnik's most sought-after kundurice return to the festival stage, with tickets for all performances already sold out.
One of the dramatic successes of the Dubrovnik Summer Festival, the play "Mara and Kata," returns to Kazerma. Directed by Saša Božić, it was created as an authorial work in partnership with actresses Nataša Dangubić and Doris Šarić-Kukuljica. It will be performed from August 16 to 19, and all tickets for these dates have already been sold, as reported by Dubrovnik Portal.
The play is based on the legendary radio show of Croatian Radio Dubrovnik, "Na posjedu u Kundurica," but it begins where the original radio recording ends. Mara and Kata are portrayed by Dangubić and Šarić-Kukuljica, who for seven years have been commenting on Dubrovnik, Croatia, tourists, 'afitavanje' (gossiping), politics, and everything that comes their way.
The first performances are scheduled for August 16 at 8:30 PM and 10:30 PM. The following day, August 17, the performance is set for 9:30 PM, and on that occasion, the jubilee 50th performance will take place. The final four performances will be on August 18 and 19, starting at 8:30 PM and 10:30 PM.
This duo, using their recognizable humor, well-timed comedic twists, unique expression, and absurd interpretation of life's wisdom, constantly criticizes everyone and everything. According to Antonelo Tošić, Mara and Kata, while thoroughly combing their hair, humorously and expressively comment on all city topics: from the current political situation in Croatia, through 'afitavanje,' to which tourists they like the most.
The project began in 2020, during the coronavirus pandemic, through the collaboration of the Dubrovnik Summer Festival and director Saša Božić. What was supposed to become a play grew into a long-term theatrical collaboration and then a great friendship between Božić, Dangubić, and Šarić-Kukuljica.
Over seven years, Mara and Kata have become a kind of record of Dubrovnik's recent history, from those at the top of political power to the so-called 'oriđinali' (originals), unique individuals without whom the city would not be what it is. The audience still receives them well, which is probably the best indicator that there is still enough material in Dubrovnik for Mara and Kata.
In the new episode of the Festival Podcast, hosted by Ivana Antunović Jović, the guests are Nataša Dangubić and Doris Šarić-Kukuljica. The episode carries the slogan: "WITHOUT SCRIPT, WITHOUT MASKS. BEHIND THE SCENES, BETWEEN THE LINES. ONLY HONEST CONVERSATIONS." In the conversation, the actresses return to the beginning of the whole story and reveal how the play has changed over seven years and why Mara and Kata have no intention of stopping even after 50 performances.
Saša Božić was born in 1979 in Vinkovci and graduated in Theater Directing and Radio from the Academy of Dramatic Art in Zagreb in 2006. He is the founder and artistic director of the theater group de facto, and in collaboration with Ksenija Zec, he has realized many award-winning projects for children and young people. In co-authorship with Dora Ruždjak Podolski, he wrote the play "Rent a friend," whose production was awarded the Croatian Actors' Award. He teaches as an assistant professor at the Department of Stage Movement at the Acting Section of the Academy of Dramatic Art in Zagreb.
