Ocean Sea

Original title Oceano mare

Première 3. 10. 2025, Gledališče Koper

Running time 2 hours 30 minutes, with one intermission.
Surtitles: English

Post-performance discussion with the artists.

Director and set designer Ivan Loboda

Translator Maja Gal Štromar

Authors of the dramatization Anja Drnovšek, Ivan Loboda, Helena Šukljan

Dramaturg Helena Šukljan

Costume designer Tina Kolenik

Composer Sašo Fajon

Lighting and video designer Domen Lušin

Language consultant Martin Vrtačnik

Assistant director Ivona Furlan

Cast

Sara Gorše, Zala Djuric, Igor Štamulak, Rok Ličen, Luka Cimprič, Lara Komar, Rok Matek, Mak Tepšić, Blaž Popovski

The production is based on the novel Ocean Sea (1993) by the Italian writer Alessandro Baricco, which, with its fragmentary structure and aesthetic scope, is today regarded as a key example of contemporary Italian literature. Like the novel, the stage adaptation is set in the remote and secluded seaside resort of Almayer, which serves as an important - though temporary - home for numerous guests who have arrived there either deliberately or by chance. They have come with the hope that the sea - like a last remedy - will cure their “ailments.”

The stories of these unusual inhabitants - permeated by lost loves, disappointments, shipwrecks, and eternal questions - at first only lightly brush against one another. The true dramatic conflict begins with the arrival of a mysterious sailor and later a doctor; their presence reveals how deeply their fates are intertwined. The destiny of all the characters in the drama is indelibly marked by the sea. As both symbol and protagonist, the sea becomes an ever-changing backdrop that reflects or challenges emotional states and transformations.