Rivals by Kazališna družina Lectirum in Bale

Thursday, 23.07.2026. 21:00. h

Rivals, a romantic comedy by Marijana Nola produced by Kazališna družina Lectirum, is performed on Tomaso Bembo Square.

At Bembo Fest, Rivals is staged under the direction of Saša Broz, with Ksenija Pajić, Natalija Đorđević and Mladen Čutura. The play is performed on Tomaso Bembo Square and centres on two actresses who meet again in the same theatre project after a long break.

Two egos, one dressing room and an old theatre wound

The plot of Rivals begins in a theatre dressing room, a place where the audience usually does not enter, but where nerves, vanity, memories and unfinished business often collect. Two actresses once played together in the hit production Spletke, based on motifs from Molière’s comedies, and each believed she was the better, more important and more deserving part of its success. Fifteen years later, the theatre director decides to revive the play and cast them both again, but they do not know that until the last moment. The meeting before the dress rehearsal therefore becomes a comedy of character: behind the sharp lines stand wounded ambition, fear of being forgotten, the need for recognition and the question of whether theatre can reconcile what theatre once helped to divide.

Lectirum’s acting trio

In Rivals, Marijana Nola writes a comedy about theatre from the inside, while Saša Broz’s direction shapes the conflict through dialogue rhythm and acting collision. Ksenija Pajić and Natalija Đorđević carry the duel between the two actresses, while Mladen Čutura opens a third perspective in the dressing-room game. The set design is by Miljenko Sekulić, costumes by Marita Ćopo and music by Nenad Brkić.

Getting to Tomaso Bembo Square

The play is performed on Tomaso Bembo Square, in the old centre of Bale. For an evening arrival, come earlier if you are driving to Bale and need to find parking before the performance starts.

Accommodation in Bale

For Rivals on Tomaso Bembo Square, staying in Bale is the most practical choice: the performance can be reached on foot, and after the comedy there is no return drive from another town. See accommodation here: accommodation in Bale.