Memory of the Forest

The critics referred to ‘’Memory of a Forest’’ as a ‘’little, big book’’ and ‘’a powerful, stripped down, brutal prose where language is a blurred manifestation. This is a story about growing up in Karakaš’s vision of the mountainous Lika region, where emotions are suppressed and where being different is not easy. The hero of the story is a sensitive boy with a heart condition who finds himself in a series of events which are bitter, funny, thrilling miniatures of exceptional warmth and authenticity. Veterinarians, fortune tellers, petty thieves, grumpy grandfathers and caring mothers, the father as the embodiment of the undeniable patriarch, and animals everywhere, a picturesque bestiary in the eye of the storyteller as suggestive as the world of humans; all of them are emerging out of a void where no salt can be found in the breath of the sea it feels, except in the hair of the freest. To stage such a material is a challenging and imaginative feat and Tamara Damjanović and Nina Bajsić are two authors who approach this text as a pulsating flesh ready to be built on...

The novel ‘’Memory of a Forest’’ is the winner of the ‘’Kočićevo pero’’ Award as well as the first Fric Award, which was set up last year by Express Magazine for the best not translated prose.

‘’There were people crying at the dress rehearsal on Tuesday, yet there were also those who were laughing out loud. Karakaš is profoundly true, humane and political.’’ (Boris Rašeta, 24express)

‘’A powerful depiction of a family and growing up in a rough village in the Lika region ...in adapting the novel by Damir Karakaš, based on emotions and poetic notes, the director Tamara Damjanović and the dramaturge Nina Bajsić opted for the speech of sound and the language of movement as the crucial theatrical tools in staging the story.’’ (Nina Ožegović, T-portal)

‘’The exceptionally well-tuned cast, which was rewarded by the audience with an enthusiastic applause, is led by the young Filip Križan in the role of the Boy. Darko Milas persuasively portrayed the character of the Father, but credit must go to other members of the cast as well for the superb portrayals of their characters...’’ (Mirela Drkulec Miletić, Zagrebački list)

‘’The harsh world of the novel is staged in an almost fairy-tale-like manner. The production is on the whole impressive. It leaves a bitter taste in the mouth in a country where violence towards the weak is often ‘’a private matter’’... The lead role of the Boy is brilliantly played by Filip Križan. (...) A key scene in the play was performed by Ivana Bolanča and Darko Milas.’’ (Bojana Radović, Večernji list)

‘’The theatrical version of the ‘’Memory of a Forest’’ has an almost tangible intensity of a true emotional roller-coaster.’’ (Gea Vlahović, 24express)

‘’Darko Milas steals the show. Long after you’ve watched the play, you will ponder his performance. His portrayal of the patriarchal, abusive father is three-dimensional and profoundly humane.’’ (Snježana Pavić, Globus)

“Memory of the Forest is a successful and well thought through transfusion of the lyrical novel in a seemingly small, poetic play that hides under its veil many clever solutions in acting and directing.” (Igor Tretinjak, Vijenac)

“Using the novelistic fabric very freely, Tamara Damjanovic has succeeded to author her own play which nonetheless does share certain similarities with the main elements of the original plot and, by means of various theatre techniques, does transfer onto the scene the spirit of Karakas' work. To do so she primarily relied on actors who, in response to her originally conceived concept, gave her full support and created a series of highly successful and mutually meticulously coordinated characters.” (Tomislav Kurelec, Kazalište.hr)