The Sarajevo National Theatre was THE place to be last Wednesday evening. Even the taxi driver said, as he dropped me, that he saw on TV that “there was something very special on, a guest performance from Belgrade”. It was another sign that everyone in Sarajevo heard about RCC’s initiative to bring together the peoples of the region not just for conferences and seminars on jobs and economic growth, but also for cultural events.  And this was not some pop or folk diva who find it easy to find commercial sponsors. This was a top of the range theatrical experience; a popular comedy play, mandatory literature for my generation, a book we loved to re-read because it’s so funny, amusing and at the same time also a bitter satire. It has characters and dialogues which inspire an intelligent laugh about the world the playwright lived in and which in many ways we still live today. It is a timeless comedy and the only thing better than reading it is  - seeing it on stage.

This particular production, staged by Belgrade’s “Bosko Buha” theatre is quite different to the previous ones I saw. All female roles are played by men and there is only one actress in the whole play and she plays a boy. The scenography is lavish and impressive and what amazed me was how topical a hundred year old comedy can be with the right production (Tanja Mandic Rigonat). It is almost as if the script was written today! The title role of a Minister’s wife  is brilliantly played by Goran Jevtic, an actor famous for his transformation talents, remembered best for his role in “Parada”, the most popular film in the last decade in our little part of the globe.

I was happy, lucky and privileged to have my ticket! They were sold out within hours and the auditorium was chock-a-block; all seats taken, additional chairs brought in and a lot of people standing and yet happy just to be there. Looking around me, I was amazed by the diversity of the audience. Next to me, a little girl was sharing the seat with her mother, right beside them – some  students and then a retired couple. It was as if all the generations converged on the National Theatre that evening. The girl was giggling all the time, too young to really understand the play but obviously enjoying the fantastic energy of the actors, the music and the dancing.  And she was repeating “PRELEPO”, the word that the Gospodja Ministarka uses so often. It means – beautiful, gorgeous.

No one sat  still, young students were applauding tirelessly and laughing hilariously whenever Gospodja Ministarka - basically a canny and primitive woman catapulted in her mind into high society when her husband becomes a cabinet minister -  tries to be chic and well groomed. An elderly couple was happy to see “uncle Vasa” played by the famous Vlasta Vlaisavljevic: “Could he be over 80? Is he older than us? He’s so good!!!  It’s been such a long time since we watched him in Belgrade, I think it was in in 1988...” Yes, it was also an evening for a touch of nostalgia and a sense of loss. Two ladies behind me loved the dresses and costumes, “I can hardly believe that men play women”. “Oh, this is a new generation of actors, they are so inventive and not afraid of the  taboo”.

The play ends with a fantastic second transformation by Goran Jevtic who plays the title role of the  Minister’s wife. From a man playing a woman, he turns into a man again, promising that even though she/he is now  dishonoured and tainted, he will be back and Minister again.

Overall, it was a marvellous experience. A timeless play performed by an extraordinary team of artists who brought so much positive energy into the Theatre. Like everyone else, I enjoyed every minute and every aspect of the play: the scenography, costumes, music, the energetic and powerful ensemble awarded at the end with standing ovations. On the way out, just about everyone was repeating what the little girl next to me was saying right through the play - “PRELEPO”. And yes, it was indeed – PRELEPO, absolutely gorgeous!

Mirela Mahic