Interview: Vladimir Grbić, actor

About Schiller's "Robbers"

'The Robbers' was written in 18th century and it is considered to be the first melodrama ever. When a modern man takes a play such as 'The Robbers', he cannot help but find some things ridiculous, pathetic or dramaturgically problematic. We do not do things the same way people 200 years ago did and vice versa. Therefore, the play poses a dilemma: was Schiller jesting (if so, our production is adequate) or not. If not, the mankind has changed greatly for the past 200 years and 'The Robbers' must be performed in a different manner. This makes our production adequate, one way or another


By DANIJELA MILOVANOVIĆ
from Belgrade, SERBIA


On November 21st, a production of "The Robbers" was premiered at National Theatre in Subotica. The creative work of putting Schiller's complicated drama into our culture and century was done by Nikola Zavišić, a young director from Belgrade and Maja Pelević, a dramaturge. They achieved this by adding football fans. This production lasts only an hour and a half, as opposed to more than a three-hour-long original play. Sharing his thoughts about the play and working with Nikola Zavišić, we present Vladimir Grbić, a young actor of the National Theatre in Subotica.

How did you start working with Nikola Zavišić?

Choosing the director is up to the producer. Nikola Zavišić is a rising star director who studied in Prague and has worked with one of the most famous world directors, Robert Wilson, who taught him a great deal. He's already worked for the Yugoslav Drama Theatre and Serbian National Theatre, and is certainly one of the most talented young directors I've worked with.

Placing a play such as 'The Robbers' in the modern times can be considered too brave a move. How do you feel about this and do you think that it could work?

'The Robbers' was written in 18th century and it is considered to be the first melodrama ever. When a modern man takes a play such as 'The Robbers', he cannot help but find some things ridiculous, pathetic or dramaturgically problematic. We do not do things the same way people 200 years ago did and vice versa. Therefore, the play poses a dilemma: was Schiller jesting (if so, our production is adequate) or not. If not, the mankind has changed greatly for the past 200 years and 'The Robbers' must be performed in a different manner. This makes our production adequate, one way or another.

What was the audience's reaction?

On the premiere back in 1782, men clenched their fists, women fainted and the press published its review under 'The Upside-down World' title. I doubt that theatre can turn the world upside down today (politics does that now), but the audience was both amused and shocked. We got applauses and screams, as well as long tense silence, more affective than any applause. I think we left a good impression.

Was it strange to see a well-known drama form another perspective? How different it truly is from the original?

The Robbers can be called a work of historical significance. A story of the epic fight between Good and Evil. A story of revenge and high ideals. We mustn't forget that the play was written a few years before the French bourgeois revolution, when the world seemed to be turning upside-down, with or without the play's help. On the other hand, we can look at it as a story of a spoilt, rich student who, when he realises his family is dysfunctional, decided to change things: not by improving things in the family, but by creating a gang. His idea kills about 400 people by the end of the play. A humanist cares about a man, a revolutionist - about an idea.

Could you find your own character traits in the characters you played?

Whenever you work on a character, you start from who you are. The goal of every actor is to go the furthest from oneself they can, to become somebody else, but it is impossible not to use your real-life and emotional experiences. I tried to find traits my characters and I have in common. I play two characters - Razmann, who serves the gang leader, and Hermann, who serves his brother Franz. Although they are different characters, they have pliability in common. It's important to justify your characters' actions to yourself because it helps you understand them better. The way people justify their actions in everyday life, even if they commit serious crimes.

How different are these roles from those you have at your theatre in Subotica?

At the moment I have seven roles, and I must say, though it may sound a cliché, each is a story in its own right, specific in a way. Let's say that the major difference between The Robbers' roles and others is in the show format itself. 'The Robbers' have a knockabout element which demands that the actor 'steps away' from his role and 'be ironic' towards it. There is something Brecht - like in our characters; and Brecht stands for keeping your distance while working on a character, which is not the case with Stanislavski theatre, where an actor has to get into the characters. This IS different.


(Published: 10.12.2008.)