a mermaid, one houndred and seventy-eight years later

grown-ups

The Mermaid is a post-drama performance that questions how to establish a stable intimate relationship in today's consumerist and precarious society, take time and patience for others, and raises the question of whom or what we would give our voice to today. Four protagonists, women in their late twenties, face societal expectations regarding their intimate and career lives, as well as often challenging each other as "best friends" on what they expect from friends and partners. From a summer love to a nine-year relationship, The Mermaid explores how rising individualism and competition in the market—both career and intimate—affect our personal lives. If Andersen's Little Mermaid gave her body and voice for a man she fell in love with at first sight, our Mermaid explores the position of the female voice and body today, in the era of neoliberalism, guided by freedom. (Nina Kuclar Stiković)

The Mermaid is the second dramatic text in the emerging trilogy of plays, reinterpreting Andersen's fairy tales. The first, Deklici, was staged in April 2023 at Glej Theatre.

                                    alone

                                                           alone

on itself

into itself

for itself

siren: siren grew up in a large family with two sisters and a brother. siren is the third child and the second daughter. her sister is four years older, her brother two years, and her other sister three years younger. they lived in a suburb of ljubljana. the public transport between the suburb and the city was quite terrible. so all four kids passed their driving test quite quickly. the family had two cars. one was mum's and one was dad's. but the kids started using one more than the other. when they all reached their twenties, they had to share the car for going out and enjoying the vibrant city nightlife with their peers. this took a lot of communication and compromising between the three sisters and the brother. furthermore, they also hung out a lot as they'd often drive together, or one would wait for the other and joined the other’s friends. of course, they argued every now and then. when the oldest sister bought her own car and the four shared two cars, this meant less compromising and fewer arguments, but also less communication and less time hanging out.

                                                                                                                                        body

                                                                         dances

                       alone

siren: hey, lia! lia! liiiiiiiaaaaaaa!!!! has it ever crossed your mind that our generation has the most means of communication but the least ability to communicate?

lia: here's the thing ... this ghosting. fucking ghosting. you know what I mean? okay, maybe I'm the one to blame, I don't know how to find a dude who wouldn't end up ghosting me. I don't mean meeting someone one night, having a fling … and then he ghosts you. no. I mean being with someone for half a year. and then he ghosts you … but no, that's not even the worst. ... a producer. you hear me? a fucking producer. this is business. you can't ghost someone in business. ... why even say anything in the first place? why promise stuff? he could have sent a text. that's all I'd need – a text. I've been dreaming of this all my life. working day in and day out for that one chance to get into the studio. don't promise me stuff then. ... send an email there’s been a change of plans.