29th International Small Scenes Festival, Rijeka
6 – 12 May 2024
The jury of the 29th Festival consists of: Helena Buljan, drama actress, Zagreb, Croatia, Bojan Munjin, theatre critic, Zagreb, Croatia, Katerina Kocevska, drama actress, Skopje, Macedonia.
The Nenad Šegvić Award for the best production is awarded to Oedipus by a majority of votes. Performed by the Yugoslav Drama Theatre, directed by Vito Taufer and based on Sophocles’ play, Oedipus is a play in which superb acting triumphantly combines the drama of modern times and the tragedy of the ancient world.
The Anđelko Štimac Award for the best direction is awarded posthumously to Jagoš Marković for the play The Bald Soprano by the Cultural Centre Tivat. Jagoš Marković ingeniously blends the theatre of the absurd, the microcosm of common people from the Mediterranean and universal human weakness.
The Veljko Maričić Award for the best male role is presented to Milan Marić for his role of Oedipus in the eponymous play by the Yugoslav Drama Theatre from Belgrade, directed by Vito Taufer. Marić’s tragic character from ancient Greek literature was brought to life in a modern way and with unparalleled energy.
The Veljko Maričić Award for the best female role is presented to Olga Odanović for the role of Mrs Borio in the The Bald Soprano by the Cultural Centre Tivat and directed by Jagoš Marković. Odanović and her supreme acting artistry delivered a unique female protagonist who walks a thin line between dark humour and grotesque.
The Nenad Šegvić Award for the best young actor/actress goes to Joakim Tasić for the role of the messenger of the court in Oedipus by the Yugoslav Drama Theatre from Belgrade, directed by Vito Taufer. It was with his meticulous and methodical performance that Tasić managed to create such aa moving witness to a great tragedy.
The Veljko Maričić Award for the best supporting role is presented to Marko Makovičić in Branislav Nušić’s The Bereaved Family, directed by Ivan Plazibat and produced by the Kerempuh Satirical Theatre from Zagreb. Makovčić’s convincing delivery of Tanasi, a small and frightened citizen, was a successful result of a refined parody play.
A special jury award is awarded to the Austrian Café Fuerte ensemble for their terrific interplay in The Cherry Orchard by A. P. Chekhov, directed by Danielle Fend-Strahm.
The Darko Gašparović Award for the best dramaturgy is awarded posthumously to Jagoš Marković for the adaptation of the text The Bald Soprano by Eugen Ionesco in the production of the Cultural Centre Tivat.
The Dorian Sokolić Award for the best scenography is awarded to Branko Hojnik in
The Children by the Slovenian National Theatre Drama in Ljubljana, directed by Nina Šorak. Branko Hojnik’s scenography masterfully evoked the atmosphere of people in despair and hopelessness, in a world that only yesterday seemed just perfect.
The Ružica Nenadović Sokolić Award for the best costume design goes to Marija Marković Milojev for The Bald Soprano by the Cultural Centre Tivat, directed by Jagoš Marković. Marija Marković Milojev’s costume design ingeniously evokes the decadent milieu of a small Mediterranean town.
The Veljko Maričić Award for the best stage music is not awarded.
The Veljko Maričić Award for the best light design is presented to Mojca Sarjaš in
The Children by the Slovenian National Theatre Drama in Ljubljana, directed by Nina Šorak. The lighting design very convincingly suggests the atmosphere of cataclysmic times in which this story is set.
The Dalibor Foretić Audience Award was decided by the audience by voting on tickets as ballots.
The following plays all received an equal number of votes – 4.81:
The Bald Soprano, Cultural Centre Tivat
Gidion’s Knot, MESS Scene, Sarajevo Youth Theatre & Intermezzo
Oedipus, Yugoslav Drama Theatre, Belgrade.
The jury of Novi list consists of: Kim Cuculić, Ervin Pavleković, Ivana Kocijan
The Mediteran Award by the media sponsor Novi list is awarded to Olga Odanović for her performance in The Bald Soprano by the Cultural Centre Tivat.