INTERVIEW BRANKA KATIĆ, ACTRESS
I am. She is unscrupulous, decadent, ready to do anything, a real danger- ous woman. I had my first rehears- als in July, and immediately felt the dark side of her being, as if her evil was spreading through my energy field like cuttlefish ink. How does it feel to per- form on a theatre stage in your hometown after two decades? - Everything’s easier when you act in your mother tongue. e offer for the Belgrade theatre scene was a great challenge for me, because I’ve only performed in the theatre twice in the last two decades. I participat- ed in the festival of young writers at the Royal Court eatre way back in 1999, and five years ago I played the goddess Athena in the play Orestes at Shakespeare’s Globe eatre. Af- ter years of film and television roles, this was the right moment to em- body another theatre role, because - like most artists - I constantly test what I can do better. What roles await you and are there some that you de- sire? - I will perform in the series Ad- vokado by Nikola Pejaković. I’m still impatiently awaiting the premiere of the film e Roads Not Taken, with actor Javier Bardem, directed by Sally Potter, which premiered at the Berlin Film Festival, as well as the premieres of the films It’s Not Bad to Be Human, directed by Duško Kovačević, and e King’s Man, di- rected by Matthew Vaughn. e roles I desire would be most similar to the role of Dijana, who I had the opportu- nity to play in the excellent Croatian television series e Paper, which you
can watch on Netflix.
You’ve lived in Los Ange- les, while you’ve been in London for more than 20 years. Has Belgrade re- mained your city? - Belgrade is the city I wish for first, which is why I come often. I feel most at home here. As soon as they opened the borders after the first wave of the pandemic, I was on a plane... I also love our cuisine and there are restaurants where waiters have long known me, I can’t resist plum dumplings regardless of the stage of my diet I’m at. I adore our rivers, the Danube and the Sava. I recently went on a full day’s cruise on the Danube to the archaeologi- cal site in Vinča, a fun time that I recommend warmly to everyone. Socialising with people dear to me in my hometown makes me happy. Tell us about London... - We live in North London, in Islington. My favourite destina- tion there is the promenade beside the river canal, filled with boats and ducks. I also really love the beautiful parks of London and my favourite is Hampstead Heath, packed with the lush canopies of old trees, hillocks, small lakes where you can even take a dip; it’s wonderful for walking. e cultural offer in London is fantas- tic, before the pandemic I would go to some good exhibition or concert every week, and, in the spirit of Ser- bian hospitality, our house is often full of friends. My husband teases me when he says ‘Get one Serb, get three for free’. What have you learnt from this pandemic? - In 2020 I’ve thought more about the true values of life. I stopped and listened to my soul. I believe this slower rhythm will bring us all aware- ness. at we’ll stop being a consum- er society that’s destroying the planet and thinking only about profit and personal needs. I read about a sur- vey in London where many of the re- spondents said that they don’t want to return to the old rhythm of life, in which they spent most of their time at work, and too little time with their family.
Leisurely rhythm to a better tomorrow After two decades, she’s returned to us in the theatre as Baroness Sophie in the play Twilight of the Gods. She’s here because of her desire for the theatre in her native language, but also because she can’t live for too long without her Belgrade
THE ADAPTATION OF LUCH INO VISCONTI’S FAMOUS FILM THE Damned, about the rise and fall of the Essenbecks, a family of wealthy industrialists, directed by Jagoš Marković for the stage of the Belgrade Drama eatre, did much more than ensure that theatre lov- ers would enjoy the Twilight of the Gods; it also brought Branka Katić back to our theatre, after more than two decades, in the role of Baroness Sophie. And it was time for that to happen. Serbia had yearned for its favourite actress, who is loved by all but a rare few. Her biography is inscribed with excellent roles in films and series for domestic, English, French and Amer- ican productions. Between two act- ing engagements, she often happily travels by plane and strolls through London parks and beside Belgrade’s rivers. And she finds it impossible to resist plum dumplings. “Before I accepted the role I con- sidered all my circumstances, and on- ly after that did I think about wheth- er the pandemic is still ongoing. I had the most dilemmas about whether I would manage to coordinate arriving from London, where I live, with the repertoire of the theatre in Belgrade. What prevailed was that I longed for the stage, as well as the chance to jump into such a well-directed play with great actors.” What has the character of the unscrupulous Sophie brought you in an acting sense? - Sophie is different from all that
Volim putovanja jer, posmatrajući ljude u najrazličitijim gradovima, osetim koliko smo zapravo svi slični I love travelling because when observing people in different cities I feel how similar we all actually are
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