Name Day

By Jovanka Bach

The first part of "The Balkan Trilogy."

• Language: English
• Publisher: Jovanka Bach
• Release date: Aug 4, 2015
• ISBN: 9781311697950

Jovanka Bach

Jovanka Bach is a playwright and novelist who had award winning plays staged in the U.S. England and Canada. Positive reviews in the N.Y. Times of her off Broadway plays at the Barrow Group Theatre have prompted John Stark Productions to film Chekhov and Maria, which has been aired on Super Channel Canada, PBS TV and Russian TV.

Book preview

NAME DAY

by

Jovanka Bach

John Stark, Producer.

23663 Park Capri #129

Calabasas, Ca. 91302

[e-mail]

818 222 6031 – phone, fax

Copyright: Library of Congress, 2003

www.johnstarkproductions.com

NAME DAY

by

Jovanka Bach

SYNOPSIS:

Kara, a Serbian immigrant living in California, has gone through a terrible World War II trauma, but cannot forget the event, nor forgive people she holds accountable. She insists on celebrating her American son, Mike’s engagement on the Name Day of the infant son who died in the war. The prospective mother-in-law, whom Kara blames for the past, is invited.

Old memories surface during the party and culminate in Kara revealing her own private hell. This has disastrous consequences for herself and for Mike, in particular.

The play explores the psychological price of a person’s inability to ‘let go’ of the past, to forgive and to heal. On a broader level, Kara’s individual consciousness, multiplied collectively, represents the self-destructive, atavistic rage, driving the recent, if not ongoing, Yugoslav civil war.

(‘Name Day’ is the first play in a trilogy, about Serbians and Serbian-Americans, exploring the impact of cross-cultural and cross-generational influences and differences.)

NAME DAY

by

Jovanka Bach

CHARACTERS:

Kara Mitor early 60’s, a naturalized American of Serb background

Velko Mitor early 60’s, Kara’s husband

Misho (Mike) Mitor their American born son, age late 20’s

Lily Baron Mike’s fiancée, age early 20’s

Nina Baron early 60’s, Kara’s girlhood friend, now an American

Stanko Baron about 65, Nina’s ex-partisan husband

Luka Baron age 40’s, Nina and Stanko’s son, Lily’s father

Angie Baron age 40’s, Luka’s American wife, Lily’s mother

Father Sima 60’s, a Serbian Eastern Orthodox Priest

NAME DAY

by

Jovanka Bach

ACT I

Scene I:

Time: Mid-day, late 1980’s

Place: Mitor home, L.A. Suburb

The stage is divided into an upper and lower level. Stage Center, upstairs, is a bedroom. A hallway separates it and a door, which represents a smaller bedroom.

Stage right, a stairway leads down to the lower level. This contains a kitchen with a window looking into the garden. The kitchen opens into the living room.

The living room will be the main playing area. Extreme stage left, is a front door, which opens onto a front stoop. To one side of the living room are French doors that lead out to a garden.

The home is an eclectic mix of middle class 1950’s vintage furniture, with no more contemporary additions. Hand embroidered and crocheted doilies, as well as an occasional Yugoslavian folk art artifact, provide distinctive accents.

Representational outlines, rather than solid walls, delineate the spaces. Thus, one can see characters, simultaneously, in different parts of the house.

At Rise: Two people are on stage, KARA MITOR, age 64, and her husband, VELKO, age 67.

Kara sits at a dresser in the upstairs bedroom. Slowly and lovingly she handles and strokes an infant’s small clothes, as if she cannot get enough of them. A votive candle burns on the dresser, and reflects off a framed picture. Kara crosses herself, picks up the photograph and kisses it.

Her once attractive face is careworn and melancholy. Her graying hair is pulled into a bun. This, plus her bargain basement dress and sensible shoes indicate she spends little time on herself.

VELKO is in the kitchen, where he has just finished brewing Turkish coffee. He is a vigorous, trim man with thick, gray hair.

VELKO

(calls)

Kara!

No response.

He notices something through the window.

VELKO (cont.)

Oh - oh. Your friends the gophers are back.

He pours two demitasse cups of coffee, and steps to the open kitchen doorway.

VELKO

Kara -

No response. He shakes his head.

Upstairs, she’s immersed in her thoughts and the clothes.

VELKO

Kara, the coffee is getting cold.

He enters the bedroom.

VELKO (cont.)

What are you doing in the dark? Get some light in this room.

He opens the curtain.

KARA

(as if in a trance)

These little clothes – this top – the pants. I made for Rado – all by hand.

VELKO

Put those clothes away. You spent enough time looking at them.

kara

Rado’s Name Day is coming.

VELKO

Yes. Yes. I know. I haven’t forgotten.

KARA

Every year it’s harder. The older I am, the more I remember.

VELKO

So long ago, Kara.

KARA

(slowly, gently folds the clothes)

If I could see her once more – to look directly in the eyes…

VELKO

(trying to distract her)

A gopher’s digging around your azaleas.

KARA

(quietly, almost to herself)

…make her know what she truly is.

VELKO

Misho should be home soon. He’ll want lunch. I’m getting hungry, too.

Downstairs, the front door opens carefully. MISHO (MIKE) MITOR, age 28, peers around the door. Seeing that the living room is empty, he motions to LILY, age 22.

Both are in good spirits, and behave somewhat giddily, as if they’re in on a big secret. Misho is nicely dressed in a casual sport suit. He has a pleasant, congenial face, unmarred by worry.

Lily is slender, attractive, with long, curly, reddish brown hair, worn in a soft, natural style. Her manner is irreverent, at times defensive, yet also vulnerable.

Their entrance occurs in a dimly lit living room. The main focus remains in the bedroom.

KARA

Lately, he’s out all the time. We hardly see him, and he doesn’t tell us anything.

VELKO

He’s a grown man -- only natural for him to have