PRIDE AND PREJUDICE

FOR THE FIRST TIME ON THE THEATRE STAGE IN SERBIA

The classic Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen, which subtly marked the awakening of feminist history and thought, will be staged for the first time as a theatrical production on the Large Stage of the Opera and Theatre Madlenianum on 17th November, 2024. For this cult novel, adored worldwide and adapted numerous times for both film and stage, Madlenianum has secured the exclusive rights to perform the latest dramatization by Isobel McArthur, which premiered in London’s West End in 2022 and won the Olivier Award for Best Comedy.

Pride and Prejudice, translated by Ivan Vukovic, the director, and Bojana Stefanovic, the actress, is our first dramatic premiere of the season. It will be presented in the genre of comic melodrama, enriched with exceptional musical numbers arranged by composer Drasko Adzic.

McArthur's dramatization is envisioned as a debate between the maids who comment on the romantic action of this classic while passionately portraying the main characters in the story that follows the Bennet family and their five unmarried daughters. The plot is set in a time when a good marriage was the only way for women to secure a stable and comfortable future, and it critiques this condition through the brilliant feminist character of Elizabeth Bennet. The story features a desirable bachelor, the wealthy young Mr. Bingley, as well as his friend, the unmarried aristocrat Mr. Darcy. This fantastic plot of falling in love and breaking down prejudices, performed by the Opera and Theatre Madlenianum, will be complemented by the set design of Ema Stojkovic and Jelena Kesic, costumes by Dragica Lausevic, Maja Todorovic takes care of our dramatization, while Marija Milenković is responsible for stage movement, and Nikola Zivanovic for stage speech.

The play, based on Jane Austen's work, is directed by Ivan Vukovic, whose successful career is marked by numerous awards and an unfailing instinct for attractive theatrical pieces, as confirmed by his first collaboration with Madlenianum – the hit play Lungs on our Small Stage. The cast assembled for Pride and Prejudice includes excellent actresses beloved by Belgrade audiences: Ljubinka Klaric, Bojana Stefanovic, Suzana Lukic, Milena Zivanovic, Tamara Aleksic, and Borjanka Ljumovic, while the only male actor in the cast, Goran Jevtic, will also appear in a female role. The exclusivity of the project, besides its appealing music and distinctive English humour, lies in its contemporary perspective on traditional prejudices that we still need to dismantle today. The reruns are scheduled for 18th and 19th November.

 

Sunday, 17 November 2024. at 19:30h
Large Stage of MADLENIANUM

PREMIERE

Jane Austen

PRIDE AND PREJUDICE

Comic Melodrama

Dramatization: Isobel McArthur
Translation: Ivan Vukovic and Bojana Stefanovic
Director: Ivan Vukovic
Dramaturge: Maja Todorovic
Set Designers: Ema Stojkovic Jerinic and Jelena Kesic
Costume Designer: Dragica Lausevic
Composer: Drasko Adzic
Stage Movement: Marija Milenkovic
Stage Speech: Nikola Zivanovic
Assistant Director: Tamara Sokolov

 

CAST:

Rose, Mrs. Bennet: Ljubinka Klaric

Maisie, Kitty Bennet, Mr. Collins, George Wickham, Mrs. Gardiner: Bojana Stefanovic

Effie, Elizabeth Bennet: Suzana Lukic

Clara, Jane Bennet, Lady Catherine de Bourgh: Milena Zivanovic

Anna, Mary Bennet, Lydia Bennet, Mr. Gardiner: Tamara Aleksic

Tilly, Charlotte Lucas, Charles Bingley, Miss Caroline Bingley: Borjanka Ljumovic

Flo, Darcy: Goran Jevtic

 

Stage Manager: Tamara Todorovic

Prompter: Tamara Sokolov

Organizer: Vlastimir Repic

Repetiteur: Dragana Andjelic Bunjac

Stage Master: Milan Ciric

Sound Design: Dusan Arskin

Lighting Design: Vladimir Krunic

Makeup and Hair: Mirjana Rakic

Wardrobe: Tanja Vuksanovic and Miladin Pavicevic