The Theatre of Genocide: Four Plays about Mass Murder in Rwanda, Bosnia, Cambodia, and Armenia

A Patch of Earth

126 A Patch of Earth Kitty Felde Cast of Characters dra¸en erdemoviÇ—twenty-four. vesna erdemoviÇ—his young wife (also plays the telephone operator at the American Embassy). father erdemoviÇ (also plays brano, the calm commanding officer, and jovan babiÇ, the Serbian defense attorney). mama erdemoviÇ (also plays the judge). elsbeth van der kellen—the Dutch prison guard (also plays voice 2). julija—dra¸en’s old girlfriend (also plays newscaster 2). stanko—erdemoviÇ’s nemesis (also plays newscaster 1 and guard 2). aleksandar—dumb kid who joined the army (also plays bailiff, voice 3, philip). prosecutor (also plays soldier, bus driver, voice 4, french reporter, and old man). All available actors play ghosts. All the women play the whispered voice of dra¸en and vesna’s son, nevin, who is represented by a large doll. Production Notes The play is performed without accents. There is no definable set for this play, since most of the events take place in the mind and memory of Dra¢en Erdemoviµ. Shifts in setting are created with lights and sound. The cast plays multiple roles. Characters from different periods of Erdemoviµ’s life drift in and out on stage—much like his thoughts and worries. The stage is also inhabited from time to time by the ghosts of Srebrenica’s dead, played by various members of the cast wearing similar grayish burlap garments. The voice of the child Nevin is performed by the female cast members as a chorus. The play is performed without an intermission. Pronunciations Aleksandar—Alexander Bijeljina—bay-ya-LEEN-uh Babiµ—BAH-bich Brano—BRAH-noh¥i§µenje (cleansing)—cheesh-CHEN-ye Croat—CROW-at Cvetkoviµ—SVEHT-koh-vich dinars (currency)—DEE-nahrs dobro jutro (good morning)—DOH-broh YOO-troh Dra¢en—DRAW-szhen Erdemoviµ—air-DEM-oh-vich glupak (imbecile)—GLOO-pack Gojkoviµ—GOY-kah-vich gospodine (sir)—ghos-poh-DEE-nay jongen (boy)—YAWNG-uhn Julija—YUHL-ya Juffrouw (miss)—yuh-FROW kurac (penis)—KOO-rats Maastricht—MOSS-strict Maja—MY-yah Mauritskade—MOW-ritz-skahd Medjugorje—MEHD-juh-GHOR-jia A Patch of Earth 127 nazdraviti (to your health)—nahs-draw-VEE-tee obstina (county)—ahb-SHTEEN-uh oprostite (sorry)—oh-PROHST-eet-eh Pilica—PEE-lee-tza pivo (beer)—PEE-voh rakia (brandy)—RAH-kee-ya Savanoviµ—sih-VAHN-uh-vich Scheveningen—SHVEN-ing-en slivo (plum brandy)—SLEEVE-oh Srebrenica—SHREH-breh-NEET-za Svetkoviµ—SVEHT-koh-vich Tito—TEE-toe Ustashe—oo-STAH-shuh Vesna—VEHS-nuh Willem—VILL-uhm Zaniµ—ZAW-nich A Brief History of Yugoslavia Conventional wisdom holds that it was ancient religious rivalries that led to the outbreak of violence in Yugoslavia in the 1990s. Not so. It was said of Bosnia that even back in the fourteenth century, the country was an “example to Europe of how people of different religions could live together in harmony.” But there has been ethnic violence over the years. On June 28, 1389, St. Vitus Day, Turkish Muslims fought Orthodox Christian Serbs at the Battle of Kosovo and then occupied much of Yugoslavia. It was a day that would live on in numerous anniversaries. Five hundred years later, in 1876, Serb allegations of Muslim cruelty led to war with Turkey. Twelve thousand Orthodox Christians were killed in nearby Bulgaria. Russians (including the fictional Count Vronsky from Tolstoy’s Anna Karenina) rushed to volunteer to fight in the Serb army. When the war was over two years later, Bosnia became part of the AustroHungarian empire. 128 A Patch of Earth On June 28, 1914, again on St. Vitus Day, a Bosnian Serb fired the shot that began World War I. Serb casualties during the war were two and a half times greater than even those suffered by the French. The treaty that ended the war was signed at Versailles—again, on St. Vitus Day. It established the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes—or SHS. No one was happy. The Roman Catholic Croats called it “the Serbs want it all.” The Serbs called it “only the Croats spoil it.” In 1929, King Alexander banned all political parties. Five years later, he was assassinated by Croatian nationalists known as the Ustashe. World War II did much to truly divide Yugoslavia. It is said that Hitler hated the Serbs second only to the Jews. Croats sided with the Germans and were accused of committing atrocities that even the Nazis...