press_newENGL

ThreeWeeksEdinburgh

"Go see."

Jane Berg, ThreeWeeksEdinburgh

"Vesna Mataĉić’s delivery of this vocally and physically demanding role is remarkable, as is fact that the two artistic mediums augment one another so well."

Simon Fern, The Student Newspaper

" ‘I, Who Have Hands More Innocent’ is a riveting spiritual experience, and utterly, utterly enthralling." "Vesna Tominac Matačić’s performance is without fault and deserves much praise and attention, holding an audience’s attention whilst alone on stage is no mean feat, even more so when doing so across language barriers." "An intelligent play that demands all of your attention in order to keep up with its tireless pace, you may find yourself coming back again just to fully take in the hour’s passage upon the stage." "Frenetic, captivating, and sublime – ‘I, Who Have Hands More Innocent’ is my favorite show in a very long [...]

The List

"… powerfully embodied…"

Eddie Harrison, The List

"The language is strong, and it's clear that Parun took no prisoners in her search to speak the truth about her life. Matacic is more than up to the demands of the role."

Natasha Tripney, The Stage

"Matacic – wearing white robes and standing over a map of the world – is a fierce and engaging presence and the show leaves you eager to learn more about Parun, her world and her words."

Lucian Waugh, The Exeunt Magazine

"The moral seriousness of Parun’s poetry is well-served by a dignified performance. Vesna Tominac Matačić is emotionally intense whilst studiously avoiding histrionics. Her shockingly direct addresses to the audience dispel barriers of language and wonderfully conveys Parun’s full personhood in its guilt-ridden, erotic, and playful complexity."

F. Bilčević, Oslobođenje

“The incredible acting skill of Vesna Tominac- Matačić, her incredible ability to truly slip the character through her own being, as well as the overall harmonious synergy of all the other elements of the play – stage design, choreography, music, verses, etc.  – have truly contributed to a special presentation and experience of Vesna Parun’s poetry. Specifically, it is evident that the entire authorial team worked extremely thoroughly on poetry itself, its interpretation and comprehension, and the understanding of its overall poetics and poetic sensitivity.“

M. Bićanić, Oslobođenje

“Vesna Tominac Matačić stars in this narrative poem on life and death, love and parting, freedom and fate, by moving exquisitely across the meanders and abysses of Vesna Parun’s powerful poetic word.”

Excerpt from the comment of the jury on awarding the Grand Prix at the 17th International Monodrama Festival in Bitola

“With an emotionally intense, but nevertheless precise, finely controlled and subtle acting, Vesna Tominac Matačić has managed to convey to the stage the infinitely exciting intimate and poetic identity of Croatian poetess Vesna Parun…”

T. Čadež, Jutarnji list

“Without any hesitation, one could pose the following question: Does Vesna Tominac Matačić, in fact, know and understand the work and role of the late artist better than any Slavic philologist from Zagreb? Here, the fate of a talented and oversensitive person – as dreadful as the fate of this nation – has emerged before us. After all, women were the ones who caught hell the most within this nation. Vesna Parun was also among them.”

D. Derk, Večernji list

“It is at the end of the dynamic play – when Vesna the actress recites the famous poem under her breath, buried under three or four dozen plastic bags in which the entire life and belongings of Vesna Parun the poetess is stored – that the poetic initiation is complete.”

Z. Balić, Kazalište.hr

“Vesna Tominac Matačić, who also co-authored the project, has brilliantly and fascinatingly borne the not-at-all light burden carried by the poetess, her own words and life alike. With this monodrama, Vesna Tominac Matačić has once again demonstrated all the splendour of talent that astonishingly follows all stages of the character she portrays. Fully committed to the character, she has not once lost the connection with the eponymous heroine, whom she portrayed most inspiringly, and the ovation that accompanied the premiere was entirely justified and sincere.”