Guest Performance as Part of the HNK2EU Project – European Theatre Cycle in Zagreb
Berliner Ensemble, Germany
Tena Štivičić: Die Verstreuten (The Scattered)
Translated from English by Karen Witthuhn
The performance is in German with Croatian surtitles.
The world is obviously falling apart, and a little bit of family security would be nice in that situation. So four sisters return home for a family get-together as their mother has wished. Scattered all over Europe, they live lives that couldn’t be more different. And then there was this pandemic, which has left deeper marks on everyone than they want to admit. Tena Štivičić has written a play for the Berliner Ensemble that traces the cracks in our society using the example of one family. The complete disruption to everything we know and experiences of isolation on the one hand, and being digitally connected on the other, have changed the relationships between the sisters just as much as they have changed how they imagine their future lives and deaths. But despite all the conflicts, in Štivičić’s play, the attempt to recreate the bonds so painfully missed and at the same time radically assert oneself most definitely has its comic sides too.
Director: Laura Linnenbaum
Stage Design: Daniel Roskamp
Costume Design: Michaela Kratzer
Music: David Rimsky-Korsakow
Lighting Design: Steffen Heinke
Dramaturgy: Sibylle Baschung
Cast
Barbara, In her late seventies, a retired archivist: Josefin Platt
Sofia, In her mid-forties, until recently the wife of a Croatian ambassador: Constanze Becker
Sasha, In her late thirties, author, not a dog walker: Kathrin Wehlisch
Suzana, Fifty, home-based worker, not a housewife: Bettina Hoppe
Sabina, In her early forties, a cook – or rather, a head chef – but in reality an online personality: Pauline Knof
Content Note
This production addresses the themes of rape, suicide and euthanasia through its language.
Premiere: March 21, 2025, Neues Haus
Duration: Approx. 1 hour 50 minutes, no intermission
From the Reviews
“By slowly unravelling the threads of these four women’s lives – the personal and societal reasons for their failures – Tena Štivičić manages to capture a whole panorama of our ideologically charged times.”
Berliner Zeitung
“A thoroughly gripping evening (…), carried above all by strong actresses.”
Berliner Zeitung
“A powerful play with five magnificent actresses.”
Berliner Morgenpost
“Laura Linnenbaum’s production plays cleverly with the possibilities of depicting digital connectivity on the theatre stage. New media, which brings people together more quickly whilst simultaneously driving them further into isolation.”
Berliner Morgenpost
“A highly intense and also moving play, which is truly elevated to another level by the actresses and also by Laura Linnenbaum’s clever direction.”
Deutschlandfunk Kultur
“Die Verstreuten is a positive example of how a drama clearly conceived on the drawing board can succeed in addressing current topics of discourse, thanks to the author’s technical excellence and a strong ensemble that brings the characters to life as edgy figures.”
Das Kulturblog
