Two productions by the Yugoslav Drama Theatre were performed at the “Purgatories” Mediterranean Theatre Festival in Tivat. William Shakespeare’s Richard II, directed by Boris Liješević, was featured in the competition program, while Branislav Nušić’s People’s Deputy, directed by Vito Taufer, was performed following the official awards ceremony and closed this year’s festival.
By a unanimous decision of the expert jury, Milan Marić was honored with the Award for Acting Virtuosity at the 21st “Purgatories” Festival for his portrayal of Richard II in the production of the same name.
The jury—comprising dramaturg Željka Turčinović, actress Ljiljana Blagojević, and director Dušanka Belada—stated in its official citation: “Milan Marić builds the role of the King with immense layered complexity, spanning from an unfeeling and cold ruler, indifferent to the suffering, pain, and hardships of his subjects, to an unfortunate and desperate man falling into a profound crisis as he is forced to realize who he is without his crown and when he loses power. This facet of Richard’s personality features many different faces, which Marić approaches not merely through interpretation, but by embedding his own artistic signature through the sheer power of his acting skill and talent. Surrounded by the exceptional and powerful ensemble of the Yugoslav Drama Theatre, Marić asserts himself as the ‘primus inter pares’ of the performance, thereby achieving a virtuoso interplay and positioning himself as a compelling interpreter of Shakespeare’s idea that power has no stable footing – neither in the life of a king nor in the life of an ordinary man. Power corrupts, strips away humanity, and leads to ruin. This is the crux of Marić’s successful interpretation of Richard II in this production, making this award richly deserved.”