The first premiere title of this Festival season, Shakespeare’s Hamlet as directed by Paolo Magelli and performed by the Festival Drama Ensemble, was put on last night, 27 July, on the Lovrjenac fort. The outstanding cast led by the first-ever Hamlet from Dubrovnik, Frano Mašković, and the breath-taking Lovrjenac as Elsinore more than justified the high expectations. The play attracted people from all over the region and many Croatian dignitaries attended the premiere, including Prime Minister Andrej Plenković and Minister of Culture Nina Obuljen Koržinek.

The incredible thespian Dražen Šivak played more than 30 characters last night, 26 July, in a virtuosic performance of the Dario Fo masterpiece, the monodrama Mistero buffo as directed by Lee Delong, in front of a large audience on the stunning Bokar fort.

Croatian Radio and Television Choir, under the baton of their principal conductor and the Festival’s own Assistant Artistic Director for Music maestro Tomislav Fačini, gave a breath-taking performance last night, 25 July, in the Rector’s palace atrium. The evening’s programme included the most beautiful Russian Orthodox choral literature: selections from Sergey Rachmaninov’s All-Night Vigil and Three Choruses by Georgy Sviridov.