The first drama premiere at the 74th Dubrovnik Summer Festival See How Lokrum Brushes Its Teeth, directed by Paolo Tišljarić, is a co-production by the Dubrovnik Summer Festival and the Marin Držić Theatre based on the eponymous Ivana Lovrić Jović novel. It is on the programme from 12 to 14 July on the island of Lokrum. With a discussion about the play, moderated by the Festival’s Assistant Artistic director for the theatre programme Saša Božić, director Paolo Tišljarić and actresses Marija Šegvić, Sandra Lončarić, Mirej Stanić and Anja Đurinović presented the premiere title this morning on the Arsenal restaurant terrace at the Gradska Kavana cafe.
“I am happy that today we are presenting a play that is a kind of turning point for the Marin Držić Theatre ensemble in terms of the contemporary, I would call it the ‘Dubrovnik’ repertoire, because Ivana's novel, as much as it is from Dubrovnik, is also broader than that, which is a hallmark of good novels. Last summer, while I was reading this novel, tears kept coming to my eyes, and it seems to me that while working on the play, we all tear up a little at each rehearsal. Cooperating with Ivana has been very pleasant, but it has also been a challenge because she wrote a novel about her family in which she shared very intimate things and talked about everything that hurts us in our families, the things we don't want to talk about and all of that is packed into a dense, high style that may not be to everyone's taste, but I think can touch everyone. Rehearsals are coming to an end, we are finishing them incredibly calmly, in a good atmosphere," concluded Tišljarić.
In the novel See How Lokrum Brushes Its Teeth, author Ivana Lovrić Jović talks about her own upbringing, especially her childhood with and without her father. The timeline of events is displaced and, in addition to the factual element, the work also has an occasional fictional character. The novel was published in 2021 and will be put on stage for the first time ever at the 74th Festival.
Besides director Paolo Tišljarić, the creative team are: dramaturge Marijana Fumić, set designer Vesna Režić, costume designer Ana Mikulić, lighting designer Marko Mijatović, music composer and sound designer Žarko Dragojević, video designer Miran Brautović, set design assistant Nikolina Kuzmić, costume assistant Petra Andrić, music collaborator and guitar song arranger Bojan Beribaka, and stage manager Anita Bubalo.
Actress Marija Šegvić will be playing Antica, while Sandra Lončarić plays her mother Lunette. Mirej Stanić portrays Anne, Antica’s grandmother, Anja Đurinović the daughter Nuša, with Perica Martinović, Nika Lasić, Boris Matić and Bojan Beribaka are choir members.
Paolo Tišljarić was born in Zagreb on 13 December 1991. He earned his MA degree in theatre directing and broadcasting from the Zagreb Academy of Dramatic Art in 2017. Thus far, Tišljarić has staged numerous plays and has participated in organising various events, as well as the production of more than 50 professional theatre, culture, art and other programmes. His creative works include Lada Kaštelan’s The Nutcracker based on E.T.A. Hoffmann at the Croatian National Theatre Varaždin, Henrik Ibsen’s Nora, co-produced by the Joza Ivakić City Theatre Vinkovci and the Marin Držić Theatre Dubrovnik, Tena Štivičić’s Fireflies at the Marin Držić Theatre, Ivo Vojnović’s Masquerades Under the Roofs at the Marin Držić Theatre, and many more. He won the Orlando group prize in the 2015/16 season for Othello, directed by Ivica Boban. He has served as the director of the Marin Držić City Theatre in Dubrovnik since November 2018.
Tickets for the play See How Lokrum Brushes Its Teeth, on the programme from 12 to 14 July, are available on the Festival's official website www.dubrovnikfestival.hr and on the ticketing service www.ulaznice.hr, as well as at the box office at the Festival Palace (Od Sigurate 1 Street), which is open every day from 9.00 am to 9.30 pm. By purchasing tickets for two premiere theatre or three music performances, a complimentary ticket for one reprise theatre or music programme of choice is included. The Croatian Student Identity Card (X-ica) and International Student Identity Card (ISIC) provide a 10% discount for a maximum of two tickets per performance. Holders of the one-day DU PASS card recieve a 10% discount, three-day ones 30% and the seven-day ones 50% on two tickets per performance. Purchases made with Mastercard® and Maestro® cards online or at the Box Office receive a 10% discount, with instalment payments available for purchases over €70. Purchases made with Mastercard® cards receive a 10% discount, and for amounts over €70, payments are available in 2 or 3 instalments.