Why this, one might say, chauvinist concept (of segregation)? Probably because today there is a tendency of overuniforming the two sexes – a claim corroborated also by the authors of the performance, Katarina Pejović and Boris Bakal. But also because for a performance aimed at attaining inner closeness, identification and truth it was necessary to create a so-called “safe place”, a place where both men and women feel safe one from another. (…) This is a brief report but there will be more on Shadow Casters as here we deal with intelligent, dramaturgically subtle performances of great emotional potentials.
Igor Burić, “Little Space for Great Quality”, Dnevnik
The cathartic quality of Shadow Casters projects should be considered in light of making this what is known and expected relative and leaving it aside. It must be clear that one should really know how to appreciate the investment by the authors and actors of MFFM – a decision to approach each spectator personally, along with the responsibility and risk to really try to change something in the one-on-one play and not playing to please the audience. Here is no more important what is the story about, how good is the acting and the effects but how are we as people, male or female, with one or another.
Igor Burić, “What are We and Who We are”, Dnevnik
What is essential in Male and Female preformance is the dedication of performing, by performers and the audience alike (…) More specifically, those are acting tasks out of ordinary range since in all Shadow Casters projects performers are also co-authors of their roles although in this case the usual term should be replaced by participation, despite its connotations.
Igor Ružić, “Nuances Reduced to Binarity”, Vijenac
The (Female) performance is actually conceived as a kind of therapeutic seanse against loneliness. The stories told by actresses are convincing; with very little “acting” they talk about fear of rejection, of death, about loneliness, childhood traumas.
Tomislav Čadež, “Men Were Mostly Silent as They Felt Embarassed”, Jutarnji list
The most interesting and intriguing of what the new Shadow Casters performance MFFM, by the authors Katarina Pejović and Boris Bakal, offers is a high-quality questioning of general sterotypes on gender roles of males and females in 21st century.
Petra Jelača, “Shadow Casters in &TD: Stereotypes on Male-Female Relations Even in the 21st Century”, Lider
Women in the audience respond: they talk about giving birth, about the feeling of suffocation, about cleaning the house, the need to be perfect, female competition and solidarity, love… and while we are becoming aware of the fact that we move in circles of subjects already worn out from being babbled about, it strikes me – and not for the first time – that this is the truly hard face of reality.
Iva Gruić, “Female Spectators Were Relaxed and Talkative”, Jutarnji list
Equal to their strength is their beauty, tenderness and refined femininity – the qualities no one can take away from them.
Anđela Trampuš, “Girls Night In”, Port.hr
On the other hand, the guys have proved that they had no problem whatsoever to discuss and reflect on reproduction, while women in the audience have unfortunately confirmed the ugly truth on the taboo of female sexuality (with bright exceptions but those are often misunderstood in society). Actually the fact that there exists a different world from the female one and that no sex is here merely to fulfill the function of gratifying the other sex is comforting and soothing.
Anđela Trampuš, “Casting Shadow on Sex Myths”, Kamo.hr
What is crucial (also) in this performance by Shadow Casters (…) is a specific emotional relation of actors towards the audience. Cynicism and even irony are literally eradicated – an occurrence simply unimaginable these days both in theatre and everyday relations. We are faced with the authenticity of this performance but also of this entire theatre machinery, a machinery of sensitivity deprived of irony. Regardless of the fact that we cannot be sure whether or when the actor is acting or not, while staring in our eyes and talking about themselves – the atmosphere we are immersed in, that spirit of kinship, this is all genuine and without hidden agenda.
Zlatko Paković, “Tenderness Among Men”, Danas
When asked by men what they wanted to talk about and what they wanted them to do on stage, some female voices from the audience shouted that they could perform a striptease and that this was a great occasion for a girls’night out. What followed was a series of accusations of men by women in the audience after which the actor Vili Matula said that this was the hardest performance he has ever done in his life and that he felt as a “fish on the grill”. (…) “Is it possible that everything we did tonight was a stereotype? What did you expect from us? Why don’t you say it? What did you expect? I have never seen more beautiful faces in one place before and felt as bad as I feel now. You didn’t want to communicate more deeply on any subject and now here you are, accusing us for not offering you a good enough show. You are the ones who make it that way,” said Matula.
Mirsada Lingo, “What Men (Don’t) Know About Women”, Nezavisne novine
Generally speaking, Jelena Miholjević is the energetic core of the entire Female peroformance since she manages with great lenience to shift between performing i.e. improvising virtuosity and classical acting tasks, cordial conversation with unknown spectators and slightly acid and subtly ironic comments on male and female gender. As to other performers, here we encounter again the familiar paradox when Shadow Casters are in question: the looser the border between confession and acting, between story-telling and growing together with the role is, the better the performance is functioning. (…) I would say in favour of the Female performance that the actors’ team and the gathered audience (at least on the opening night) collaborate openly, sharing mutual creativity and humor, and for this reason the process will gain in complexity and quality with each new performing.
Nataša Govedić, “On Wars, Purses and Women’s Solidarity”, Novi list
