Martyr plot and the national founding myth: staging Croatian national identity through amateur performances of a medieval genre

ABSTRACT

A windy day in May in a small village Velo Grabje on top of the hill of the island of Hvar. A small, centuries old, chapel and a dry, dusty island’s landscape is the only mise en scene for the performance of the medieval saint play which is just about to take place in front of around 40 visitors. As the wind carries their entrance song and waves their costumes, long black and white black tunics, a group of well-coordinated men of all ages, deliver a well know story of the life and suffering of Saint Lawrence. They deftly pronounce the verses from the sixteenth century, largely incomprehensive to the contemporary ear. Yet the costumes which in a plain and accessible way distinguish the good from the evil personae (the Christians in white tunics, the pagans in black ones, obviously); the overemphasised gestures of these characters; along with the stage directions read aloud; render the plot easy to follow. The fact that for many visitors (me included), this is not the first time they witness the performance, but one in many stagings which they will have seen, only makes the apprehension of the plot easier. This is their play!