"First, they spent a long time studying literature that deals with the pre-Christian, pagan Balkans; based on this, they chose and conceptualized their roles. By engaging with the spirit of the ancient Balkans, they were also engaging with themselves and their interpersonal relationships in real life. These are: Dušan Murić, Sanja Vinković, Predrag Rakić, Isidora Stanišić, and the ideological and creative leader is Bojana Mladenović. The scenographic imagery serves the function of past times as we "remember" them: a low wooden table, stools, taverns, grain, water, branches… The music is based on the ethnic sound and rhythm of the Balkans, and it was composed by Igor Karakaš. This is how Blanko was created, perhaps our first ethnic creation in the realm of contemporary dance.
From the initial movements, which are skillfully passed from one performer to another, and which conceptually suggest both the necessity and the disintegration of "tribal" unity, to the final image of a calm belonging to the "tribe," a whole spectrum of situations and relationships unfolds… Without visible narrativity, Blanko acts as a series of images, where the basic tone is the individual’s dependence on the community, yet nuanced by love, friendship, rejection, stumbling, the male-female opposition, and mutual attraction. The only criticism that can be made of this primarily interesting idea (incorporating personal relations into the structure of some distant time) and its original performance solution is the occasional diluted pace or some symbolically unclear sequences. However, as the performance progresses, these shortcomings are entirely lost.
In terms of performance, the "ritual" of modern movement is nurtured, as well as theatrical expressiveness, which at times borders on acrobatic skill. In this regard, the leading role, rightly so, belongs to the performer Dušan Murić.
By playing with their own personalities and real mutual relationships, while never leaving the form of pagan customs, what gives this performance its special quality is its temporality. Relying on the pagan, it indirectly speaks about the temperament of the Balkans today."
Ivana Milanović Hrašovec
12. april 2001, 14:59Ivana Milanović Hrašovec
https://vreme.com/kultura/ritam-balkana/
