by Marta Djordjevic
photo: Stefan Zdraveski
This year’s Art Trema Fest closed with The Patriots by the National Theatre “Sterija” from Vršac, based on the text by Jovan Sterija Popović and directed by Atila Antal. At a moment when Sterija’s satire of false patriotism feels strikingly contemporary, the relevance of the text itself can easily mislead audiences into equating the strength of the original play with the quality of its stage adaptation. Precisely because The Patriots resonate so painfully today, every new staging carries the responsibility to offer more than a reliance on recognizable social outrage—to translate Sterija’s diagnosis of society into a thoughtful and artistically coherent theatrical act. Unfortunately, this production does not succeed in doing so.
The performance is overly long, but its main issue is not only its duration; it lies in the absence of a clear internal progression. Scenes follow one another without sufficient rhythmic or dramaturgical intervention, repeatedly giving the impression that the performance is approaching its end, only to continue further. Such a structure generates fatigue rather than tension, so the finale, instead of functioning as a culmination, feels like an exhaustion of both the performance and the audience’s patience. Paradoxically, only the final song manages to unify the ensemble’s energy and create a sense of collective stage presence—but by then, the performance has already lost its momentum.
Antal’s direction modernizes Sterija primarily through costume and music, yet these interventions remain on the surface level. Contemporary elements are not organically integrated into a cohesive aesthetic concept, but rather appear as illustrative additions to a text that has always been sufficiently modern on its own. The production settles for “translating” Sterija into a contemporary visual code, without articulating a deeper directorial standpoint.
The characters in The Patriots are satirical types, yet their strength lies not only in being objects of ridicule, but in remaining disturbingly recognizable as human beings within their grotesqueness. When they are portrayed solely as targets of mockery, without internal logic, contradictions, or even a trace of human depth, the satire loses its sharpness and becomes predictable. It is not enough to ridicule opportunists; it is necessary to reveal the mechanisms that make them socially dangerous.
The ensemble remains continuously present on stage, but the collective performance lacks precision. In scenes involving large group presence, the actors are often not fully coordinated, some lines are inaudible, and the physical expression of the ensemble appears uneven. The production would clearly benefit from more carefully developed stage movement, especially as certain characters move within a stylized mode with far greater confidence than others—something that seems unlikely to be intentional.
The visual solutions further reinforce the impression of incompleteness. Scenic effects—from a table descending “out of nowhere” to exaggerated elements such as oversized leaves—resemble illustrative tricks rather than parts of a thoughtfully constructed stage world. The same applies to the costumes of the female characters, which in their straightforward expressiveness remain at the level of cliché instead of contributing to a more nuanced reading of the characters.
Within this uneven production, however, the younger members of the ensemble stand out, bringing energy and precision to individual scenes. Particularly notable is Darie Doklean, this year’s recipient of the Golden Trema Mask for Best Young Actor at Art Trema Fest, whose stage presence demonstrates a discipline and clarity often lacking in the rest of the performance.
In a time when Sterija’s The Patriots almost speak for themselves as a commentary on contemporary political realities, it is not enough simply to stage them and rely on the audience to recognize their relevance. Topicality is not a directorial idea. It is only a starting point. Atila Antal and the ensemble of the National Theatre “Sterija” offer a production that leans on the strength of Sterija’s text, but rarely succeeds in adding a new layer of meaning. Instead of a complex and unsettling satire about a society that changes only on the surface, we are left with a loud, overstretched, and aesthetically uneven staging that relies more on recognition than on interpretation.
THE PATRIOTS
by Jovan Sterija Popovic
Direction, Music, Set Design and Costume Design – Atila Antal
Assistant for Set and Costume Design – Sofija Lucic
Cast: Ivan Djordjevic, Srdjan Radivojevic, Fuad Tabucic, Milos Djurovic, Darie Doklean, Ana Cupic, Jovana Andrejevic Grujic, Monika Boldovina Bugle, Korina Troca
The “Criticism” Programme is an initiative by Spam Studios, developed in partnership with Art Trema Fest as part of its 29th edition, and carried out with the financial support of the “Culture for Democracy” programme of the Swiss Embassy and the Hartefakt Fund in Serbia.
