Plays / Drama Objavljeno: 5/20/2024

Judita

Judita

Marulić completed Judita, his most famous work in the Croatian language, at the age of fifty on April 22, 1501, that is, "from the birth of Jesus Christ in the flesh, one thousand and five hundred and first year, on the twenty-second day of the month of April, in the city of Split." With the masterful stroke of a skilled creator, Marulić adapted the well-known biblical story, awakening hope and dispelling the populace's fear of the invasion of the Ottomans. Besides being an epic written in Croatian, its progressiveness in considering the audience it addresses is confirmed by the bold decision to understand and present the entire work as an allegory. Considering everything, Judita seems like a highly relevant text whose allegorical nature still functions today and is a fitting choice to mark the 500th anniversary of Marko Marulić's death.

The monodrama will premiere on the new ambiental stage in front of the Church of St. Jerome on Marjan, a location whose isolation and atmosphere invite reflection on the past and the context of both old and contemporary Split, and humanity in general. The medieval Chakavian Croatian language achieves its fullness in this setting, while the nearby cave, known as the Oratory of St. Cyriac, provides a fitting hermit element. In collision with Dražen Krešić's fresh directorial poetics, the play explores distant aspects of the past and examines them in a contemporary context, both from a narrative line and a scenic perspective.