23.47°C Written and performed by Natasha Stanic Mann, The Return is an autobiographical piece about migration, fleeing war, losing everything and surviving. Its backdrop is life in Croatia during the break-up of the former Yugoslavia in the 1990s. Its relevance is clear: war in Europe is still with us. Yet it is striking how the Yugoslav Wars are now almost forgotten, unknown to many in younger generations.
This heartfelt piece is a memory play, reminding us that to remember, we must return — to painful events, to life before war and to a time of loss.
Mann is an engaging performer in mind, body and spirit, and her bravery in recounting her experiences is clear. Excellent choices of music and movement enhance the storytelling. Above all, the piece is about the war against bureaucracy, the suffocating burden of paperwork, as she contests a huge phone bill run up on her father’s account by someone else. The endless demands and repetitive questions about identity are effectively portrayed.
The piece also highlights the shared experience of European lives. The high-rise flat she grew up in, and the green turf she played on outside, could just as easily have been in the UK. But, unlike her experience, we have thankfully not heard gunfire and explosions during a civil war.
Breaking the fourth wall, and with a small audience, this was a deeply intimate piece. The material is handled with such sensitivity, never tipping into melodrama, that you could not look away. It was performed with heart and respect, and was all the more powerful for it.
