Director:

Nina Nikolikj​​

Author of the Adaptation and Dramaturg:

Tamara Barackov

Cast List:

Sasa Handzic

Amernis Nokshiqi

Toni Denkovski

Bojan Kirkovski

Irena Dimeska

Set Designer:

Ilina Angjelovska​

Costume Designer:

Ivana Karanfilovska Ugurovska​

Music:

Oliver Josifovski

​

​​​​​

Premiere 13th October 2026

Cultural Center Laboratorium

Duration: 70min

August Strindberg channels his bitterness and painful experience of his turbulent marriage to Siri von Essen into the play The Father, in which he portrays the psychological breakdown of a man, the “head of the family,” who becomes a victim of his wife’s intrigues. Given Strindberg’s intention to depict an extreme polarization, in which the woman is presented as a threat willing to use any means necessary to establish dominance within the household, The Father is often interpreted as a misogynistic play. Despite the author’s evident sympathy for one of the characters, The Father remains a timeless classic that explores the irreconcilable (masculine and feminine) principles and worldviews, as well as the consequences of unresolved relationships, frustrations, and dissatisfaction that, sooner or later, inevitably rise to the surface.

What particularly intrigued us in our contemporary interpretation of Strindberg’s text was Laura’s position. Although the author himself insisted that the Captain was the victim, the relationship between the central characters is far too complex and layered to be viewed through a black-and-white perspective. The relationship between the Captain and Laura, shaped by years of living together in an atmosphere of profound mistrust, reveals patterns that remain recognizable in contemporary marital and family relationships.

We wanted to re-examine the way the Captain treats his wife: how he addresses her, how he controls and restricts her, and, more broadly, how he perceives her. In doing so, we sought to portray the gradual progression and escalation of domestic violence. In our interpretation of The Father, Laura does not seek a doctor’s help to prove that her husband is mentally unstable; instead, she seeks help and protection from a social worker because of the psychological abuse she experiences on a daily basis.

The play creates space for a deeper examination of guilt and responsibility between two spouses trapped in a toxic and destructive relationship, one that gradually reaches a breaking point and escalates into a devastating conflict, leaving lasting damage and consequences.

 

Tamara Baračkov

Author of the Adaptation and Dramaturg