love janis

PRESS

 

 

‘E-novine  19^th August 2010.'

 

With concerts of Zdenka Kovačiček, Ana Popović, Instant Karma Beni Benasi ets...started Beerfestival in Belgrad. Good weather and love for good beer and a lot of good music brought to Ušće between 50 and 100 thousand people. This Year we expect a record number of visitors, over 800 thousand people in 4 days.

 

‘Danas.rs 19^th August 2010.'

 

Zdenka Kovačiček, the legendary Croatian singer, the grandmother of Croatian rock and roll, raised the atmosphere to the top of the hit, with her energetic performance and reminded us of Janis Joplin singing her greatest hits and her own career that almost lasted for 50 years. She confirmed that she will keep singing for many more years.

 

‘Blic.rs 19^th August 2010.'

 

On the International Jazz & Blues Festival called Nisvill in Niš she was performing on the same stage as the great Solomon Burke (one of his last concerts before he died) and the first trumpet of the world at the moment, Roy Hargrove.

Zdenka Kovačiček is one of the most important female vocals of the ex-Yugoslavian area. During her career that is spanning for almost 5 decades she successfully sang various music genres such as jazz, rock, pop, blues and soul. She also starred in musicals and plays. She was performing segments from the musical "Love Janis" where she plays the role of Janis Joplin.

 

THE CITIZENS OF LJUBLJANA SAW THE END OF MUSICAL ‘LOVE JANIS’ WITH STANDING OVATIONS 
 
 

Zagreb’s Komedija Theatre again won over the Slovenian audiences in the greatest hall of Ljubljana’s Cankarjev dom with a performance of Randal Myler’s musical ‘Love Janis’.  
 

More than thousand visitors instantly rewarded the first of legendary Janis Joplin’s songs performed by Zdenka Kovacicek with applause and ovations. 
 

The same atmosphere prevailed after the initial sound difficulties in the representative Gallus hall were fixed and the voice from the stage became clearer until the final scene after which the audiences rewarded the show with long applause and ovations.  
 

They gave the same cordial reward to Marija Boric who also played Janis and to the band that provided good accompaniment to Zdenka Kovacicek during the show. 
 

The extraordinary energy that confirmed Zdenka Kovacicek’s legendary place on the Croatian musical scene quickly found its way to the audience. Zdenka’s convincing interpretation of Janis’ husky voice carried away many, hence there were moments when they acted more like a concert rather than theatrical audience. 
 

 

 

‘Hrvatski list’, 30^th October 2008.

 

 

New European premiere at Zagreb’s Komedija Theare – a musical biography of the legendary Janis Joplin

 

 

ROCK IS COMING BACK TO THE THEATRE

 

by

 

        Tomislav Drazic

 

 

 

Two extraordinary and diverse musical interpretations of Joplin’s hit songs: Zdenka Kovacicek and the young Marija Boric on the stage of Zagreb’s Komedija Theatre

 

 

Few people from any of today’s generations don’t remember Janis Joplin, a singer who took the musical scene of the 1960-is by the storm and enchanted the world audience with her magic voice, unforgettable concerts and performances on festivals like the one at Monterey, on which she used to appear as a true blues singer, blunt and with a bottle in her hand. That is also a short summary of the European premiere or Randal Myler’s musical ‘Love Janis’, which took place last weekend at Zagreb’s Komedija Theatre.

 

During a 2-hour musical performance, by altering on stage of Komedija theatre and playing the old and the young Janis and singing 19 of her big hit songs or reading Janis’ letters to her family, both Zdenka Kovacicek and the excellent Marija Boric presented us the last 10 years of life of the girl from Texas who achieved her American dream, but who also paid its price by ending her life at the age of 27 from heroin overdose.

 

Director Lawrence Kiiru, a Zagreb student originally from Kenya, managed to combine all theatrical elements in these 2 hours, from the exceptional stage design by Dragutin Broz supplemented with video clips, to Janis Joplin’s live music performed onstage by the Branko Bogdanovic Pif’s rock band, comprised of top musicians Tomislav Krkac, Neven Mijac, Kreso Rendic and Danko Krznaric, thusly creating the atmosphere from the times of beatnik, hippies and flower power.

 

The show full of Joplin’s poignant music takes the audience back to time of pop culture when rock represented freedom and a way of expressing oneself, the time of LP records and rock legends, but also the time of the American dream in which legends like Joplin, Hendrix, Redding and others tragically ended their young lives full of alcohol and drugs abuse.

 

This musical biography on the life of Janis Joplin, blues singer with the black voice, is based on the book of her sister Laura, inspired by numerous letters Janis sent to her family during her short career. It gives a new, impartial and total glance at a talented but tragically misunderstood artist.

 

Other roles are played by Jasna Palic-Picukaric, Davor Svedruzic in alteration with Adam Koncic, Vinko Kraljevic, Ronald Zlabur and Ana Kraljevic. This musical play about the famous rock icon marks 50 years in music business of Zdenka Kovacicek, an excellent singer who had Janis as one of her greatest role models, ever since the 1960-is when Zdenka performed as part of ‘Duo Hani’ duet.

 

The first performance of Janis Joplin’s musical biography, who posthumously got her life achievement Grammy Award 3 years ago, is an instant hit in the modest theatrical offer of Zagreb, but it is also more than a mere homage to a star and her life. The Croatian premiere of her hits is a reminder of the music, time, people and events that undoubtedly determined the lives we are living today.

 

 

 

‘Novi list’, 27^th October 2008.

 

 

The premiere of the biographic musical ‘Love, Janis’ at Zagreb’s Komedija Theatre

 

JAZZ SINGER KOVACICEK AS BLUES SINGER JANIS

 

by

 

Natasa Govedic

 

 

The title (anti)heroine role of Janis Joplin is played by Zdenka Kovacicek – jazz singer of outstanding performing history, piercing voice and impetuous stage charisma

 

 

 

The biographical musical ‘Love, Janis’ is an important event of this year’s theatrical season due to the fact the title (anti)heroine role is played by Zdenka Kovacicek – jazz singer of outstanding performing history, piercing voice and impetuous stage charisma. Although the dialogue part of Janis is at the same time played by Marija Boric, her ‘simulating’ of a singer’s persona cannot be measured with the authorial energy bursting out of Kovacicek with every song onstage, thusly making the audience to loudly applaud and curiously stretch their necks. Still, unlike the white blues singer Joplin who died of heroine overdose at 27, the white jazz singer Zdenka Kovacicek has a chance to celebrate 50 years of her artistic work on Komedija Theatre’s stage. Hence this whole staging raises the important questions about how to endure in a business that literally ‘devours the hearts’ of its stars, particularly swallowing those who are a bit more insecure and sensitive.

 

A CONCERT SHOW

 

The biographical part of Janis Joplin’s story, based for the necessities of this musical upon Laura Joplin’s book published in the USA in 1992, is not capable of keeping the audiences’ attention during a 2-hour show – this is a singer who was passionately preoccupied with her own performing medium, abhorring the misuse of her privacy and particularly the role of a ‘victim’ to which the musical entertaining industry was constantly pushing her. Meanwhile ‘dancing with the stars’ became even more ruthless, while the myths surrounding singing diva artists who are always in addiction rehabilitation centres became darker.

 

Thusly the director Lawrence Kiiru’s decision to treat the show as a concert with epistolary quotes from singer’s life together with reproductions of her photographs at the stage background (scene and video design by Dragutin Broz) is justifiable on the one hand, but after a while it becomes too conventional – that is, totally opposite to the spirit of music it is presenting.

 

Even more so, since the young actress Marija Boric, who plays the drama part of Janis Joplin, gives the impression of a very natty, pleasant and obedient conformist (who is also constantly giggling to ‘her own’ statements), not the rebel who was brutally pronounced ‘the ugliest man’ in her Texas high school. That becomes even more obvious in the scenes with finely balanced Komedija Theatre’s actress Jasna Palic-Picukaric who plays The Reporter, where Boric’s Joplin leaves an impression of a pleasant and cordial next door housewife, not the hurricane that shakes the inner personalities of the new generations even today.

 

THE PLEDGE OF VOICE

 

Thusly, the irony of this whole staging stems from the fact that the singer for whom the famous rock critic Greil Marcus wrote that onstage ‘she rips not only her own heart, but virtually turns her internal organs upside down, revealing the full horror of the real sensitivity’, ends up well mannered and turned into a nostalgic fetish of the 60-is (the show also features the work of the historic costume designer Mirjana Zagorec).

 

Zdenka Kovacicek’s voice, accompanied by Branko Bogdanovic Pif and Tomas Krkac on guitars, Neven Miac on the mouth organ, Kreso Rendic on drums and Danko Krznaric on keyboards, is the only thing that takes us from time to time ‘to the other side’ of pleasure and fun, which is also the pledge of my recommendation for this lukewarm spectacle.

 

 

 

 

The Broadway show about the tragic diva on the stage of Komedija Theatre

 

 

IF JANIS JOPLIN WERE ALIVE TODAY

 

by

 

Marijana Sever

 

 

 

 

 

This show is the fulfilment of a lifelong dream for Zdenka Kovacicek and at the same time the biggest part for Marija Boric.

 

 

‘When Janis sang on Woodstock, I was the only rock singer on our own Boom festival.’

 

Zdenka Kovacicek

 

 

She rolls up marijuana joints, swallows numerous pills, takes heroin and does not leave the bottle of ‘The Southern Comfort’ out of her hand. Still, she is very emotional, lonely and fragile – and this is precisely the new Janis Joplin we get to meet on the stage of Komedija Theatre in the musical play ‘Love, Janis’. This musical story is directed by Lawrence Kiiru and the title role is played by Zdenka Kovacicek and Marija Boric. Tomorrow it has its Croatian but also a European premiere.

 

The show already played on Broadway and is based upon the book ‘Love, Janis’ written by her sister Laura, inspired by the letters the singer sent to her family after moving from Texas to San Francisco. Writing letters to her sister, Janis exposes herself in all her intimacy, expressing the thoughts that will explain her life, success, solitude, fears, desires and reasons that caused her premature death at the age of 27.

 

Zdenka Kovacicek with her impressive voice brings to life this legendary singer and presents us Janis, who, if it were not for the tragic circumstances, would be of the same age as our own diva.

 

- Janis has always been my musical idol because as a white woman she sensed blues extremely well. Black blues is more painful, but Janis knew to experience it equally well. That is why she is big even today. And my love for her goes back to the days of my youth, at the time when Joplin was at the top of her fame, the time of Woodstock. At the same time we had our own Boom festival over here, where I also sang and was the only female solo rock singer – says Zdenka Kovacicek.

 

Zdenka’s co-star, 27-year old Marija Boric, who recently graduated on Zagreb’s Academy for Dramatic Arts, is most known to the Croatian public by her TV role of Ivka the maid from the soap opera ‘The Pride of the Ratkaj Family’. She is responsible for the acting part of the show where she plays the young Janis. In her own words, this is her biggest role so far.

 

- It has been 2 months since I got the script. I watched documentaries, read biographies, listened to her albums and I can say that I am becoming a big fan of hers. This is my biggest role so far and a big experience, especially working with Zdenka, who taught me a lot –the young actress said.

 

- Bearing in mind the time we live in, Janis Joplin’s tragic fate is an ideal reminder to younger generations of the kind of life the misuse of narcotics will bring – says Lawrence Kiiru, who directed the show.

 

The show boasts with 16 Janis’ biggest hits, among which are ‘Cry Baby’, ‘Piece of My Heart’, ‘Me and Bobby McGee’, ‘Mercedes Benz’. For the first time Komedija Theatre has a live rock band and its members are Tomislav Krkac, Branko Bogunovic-Pif, Neven Mijac, Kreso Randic and Danko Krznaric.

 

  

 

 

 

Zagreb’s Komedija Theatre is the first in Europe to present the musical ‘Love, Janis’

 

 

ZDENKA KOVACICEK BROUGHT JANIS JOPLIN BACK AMONG THE LIVING

 

 

by

 

Zeljko Slunjski

 

 

 

 

Zagreb’s Komedija Theatre has a winner in the biographical musical ‘Love, Janis’, based on the book of Laura Joplin that was published in 1992.

 

The success was already obvious during the dress rehearsal and it was repeated during the previews and the opening night. Each song performed by Zdenka Kovacicek, who plays the legendary blues singer onstage, got huge applause from the packed theatre and at the end it became a standing ovation. Hence, this Broadway hit on the Croatian stage could also be easily called ‘Love, Zdenka’.

 

50 years of the theatrical and musical career of this Croatian jazz icon had to pass in order for all the doubting Tomas’ to insure that she really is an unsurpassed stage appearance capable to hold the close attention of the audiences for 2 hours.

 

The vocal freshness of this mature singer who has been around for 50 years, together with her, so far publicly unfamiliar, acting talent and energy are nothing short of a miracle. Not to mention all those high notes!

 

 

THE WORLD OF THE YOUNG JANIS

 

She was accompanied onstage by the esteemed band made of Branko Bogunovic Pif, Tomas Krkac, Neven Mijac, Kreso Randic and Danko Krznaric, who are also responsible for the success of this show.

 

The story of a singer who died from heroine overdose at 27 also features Marija Boric, who presents us with the world of the young Janis and also successfully shows her own acting skills.

 

Lawrence Kiiru used his director’s logic to lead the plot of staging Randal Myler’s work from 1998.

 

This means one must consistently lead the audience through the intimate biographic tale of the musical icon from the 1960-is. The first act, unlike the second one, perhaps lacked tempo, but that should be taken care of as the show will continue in its performances.

 

 ROCK FANS FINALLY SATISFIED

 

One must also emphasize the functional and the simple effect of Dragutin Broz’s scene design and the costumes made by Marijana Zagorac. All this put together makes a good and viewable whole. Hence, this show will make all the rock fans coming to Komdija Theatre finally satisfied.

 

 

 

 

‘Vjesnik’, 24^th October 2008.

 

 

 

The musical play about Janis Joplin in Zagreb’s Komedija Theatre

 

LOVE, JANIS

 

by

 

Mirta Spoljaric

 

 

‘Love, Janis’ will undoubtedly be yet another hit musical of Zagreb’s Komedija Theatre. Its premiere is expected with high anticipation this Saturday. Janis Joplin, one of the most popular, interesting, and influential singers of all time is one of the greatest stars in the history of music, with her voice, unique interpretation, string of eternal hit songs and especially her tragic fate.

 

 

INTIMATE LETTERS TO HER SISTER

 

Even though the mere mentioning of her name is an instant reminder of the negative side of her character, especially drugs abuse that in the end took her life, this musical tale, as announced in Komedija Theatre, will discover a different Janis to the audiences: her shy and intimate side.

 

Specifically, ‘Love, Janis’ explores the singer not only through her legendary hit songs, but also through letters she wrote to her family. Writing letters to her sister Laura, Janis exposes herself in all her intimacy, expressing an abundance of details that explain her life, success, solitude, fears, desires and reasons that caused her premature death at the age of 27. In 1992 her sister Laura Joplin published an autobiography ‘Love Janis’, upon which Randal Myler wrote a musical play of the same title. It became a success in the United States of America, firstly off Broadway.

 

On Saturday this musical story about Janis Joplin will be first seen on the European soil, since this is the exclusive European production directed by Lawrence Kiiru, who is known to Komedija Theatre’s audiencse by his successful direction of Pam Gems’ ‘Piaf’.

 

The original idea about this musical play becoming reality came from a person who will play the title role. Namely, our famous singer Zdenka Kovacicek, who marks her 50 years on the art scene by remembering Janis Joplin, her personal big musical role model.

 

 

THE LIFE OF THE ROCK SINGER

 

The story begins on the very start of Janis’ career when she moved from her birth town of Port Arthur, Texas to San Francisco. This is followed by several key moments from her life, among which is the performance on the international pop music festival in Monterey and the moment when she left her band to begin a solo rock career. The letters reveal a girl who still seeks her mother’s advice, who wants to know all that is happening at home, but who also suffers due to the lonely life on the tour.

 

Finally, the audiences will see her fall, increasing drug and alcohol addiction, her fight to remain true to herself despite fame and expectations of the fans that have their own picture who Janis Joplin really is. All these events are told in her own words, saved in the letters and interviews for radio and TV shows. The words are interwoven with her hit songs, which paints a unique portrait of a person who only wanted to be remembered by the music she was making.

 

It important to note that Komedija Theatre wants to achieve an educational purpose with this show supported by the Croatian Ministry of Culture and Zagreb the capital by giving its contribution to fight the addictions. They will try to do this by having as audiences under this slogan as much young people as possible, as well as taking the show on tour across Croatia.

 

This new musical play is starring Zdenka Kovacicek, our distinguished singer who has Janis as one of her biggest role models and Marija Boric, who plays her first role in a production of Komedija Theatre. The supporting cast are Jasna Palic-Picukaric, Davor Svedruzic in alternation with Adam Koncic, accompanied by the renowned band comprised of the top musicians: Tomislav Krkac, Branko Bogunovic-Pif, Neven Mijac, Kreso Randic and Danko Krznaric. Lawrence Kiruu is directing, scene design is by Dragutin Broz and costume design by Marijana Zagorec.

 

 

 

‘Gloria’ magazine article

 

 

TWO JANIS JOPLIN

 

by

 

Zeljko Slunjski

 

 

 

 

 

No less than two persons gave life to Janis Joplin, one of the hippy movement icons who died at 27, in the biographical musical ‘Love Janis’, which had its premiere on October 25^th in Zagreb’s Komedija Theatre.  Young Janis is played by Marija Boric and the performance by Zdenka Kovacicek, who stars as the mature Janis, got a standing ovation from the audience.

 

- I am delighted that playing the role of Janis Joplin marks half the century of my career. She is one of the greatest singers of the past century – said Zdenka Kovacicek.

 

 

 

 

 

‘Obzor’, 25^th October 2008.

 

 

LIVE FAST AND DIE YOUNG OR ‘LOVE, JANIS’

 

by

 

Jure Ilic

 

 

 

 

Tonight’s opening night of Komedija Theatre’s new musical play ‘Love Janis’ by the American author Randal Myler will also be its European premiere. Myler’s show was a big hit off-Broadway, firstly at Village Theatre where she premiered in 1998 and had more than 750 performances and later on in other theatres across the United States.

 

‘Love, Janis’ is based on the biography of the same name written after a 4-year research by Laura Joplin, singer’s 6 years younger sister.

 

This musical play at Komedija Theatre is directed by Lawrence Kiiru, who was also the director of the successful Pam Gems’ ‘Piaf’ starring Jasna Bilusic.

 

‘Love Janis’ is set as a conversation between the reporters and the singer herself, accompanied by her greatest hits. The title role is played by Zdenka Kovacicek and Marija Boric, and the role of the reporters is played by Jasna Palic-Picukaric and Adam Koncinc alternating with Davor Svedruzic. Janis’ hit songs are performed by our legendary singer Zdenka Kovacicek accompanied by the band that got together especially for this occasion, namely, Branko Bogunovic-Pif, Tomas Krkac, Neven Mijac, Kreso Randic and Danko Krznaric.

 

 

BLUES AND THE FLOWER POWER

 

The Janis Joplin story is overall one of the most exciting but also one of the saddest biographies in the history of rock and blues music. To put it simply: energy and passion. That is the best way to describe Janis, her singing and short, tragic fate that left us with the unsurpassed, beautiful music.

 

Janis is the typical example of the motto ‘Live fast and die young’ and she was one of the best white blues singers of all time (they called her ‘a white woman with the black voice’). She was the star of the 1960-is when music was more than a way of life, when rock and roll meant freedom and the way of expression, when the pop culture as we know it today was made, of which Janis was one of the most authentic high points. It was the time of the hippies, flower power, big festivals out on the open, LP records and rock legends who were more important than anything else in life.

 

The Janis Joplin story can have different omens, from the typical critics’ accolades that followed her career to moralising judgments due to her intractability and alcohol and drugs abuse. By far the best of them was chosen by her sister Laura when she entitled her intimate biography ‘Love, Janis’.

 

 

SISTER AGAINST THE STEREOTYPES

 

Actuated by her sister’s private letters, Laura Joplin tried not only to give insight to the fate of the star who died too young, but also to explore the main reasons and motives that caused her premature death. As one can see from this rich story, Janis Joplin herself will give the main pieces of the puzzle that eventually made her life. One would say that her own lucidity was much deeper than the usual picture the media created and which usually comes down to few stereotypes that are common all too often for the stories of the stars who died young.

 

Laura Joplin spent 4 years writing and researching her book, putting together numerous sources, persons and writings that she used for the complete comprehending of the subject matter and thusly wrote the best biography of Janis Joplin.

 

Above all, the book is intimate and personal, so it will undoubtedly mean a great deal to all sincere fans of Janis Joplin’s life and work. One of them was Randal Myler, the author and the director of the show, which is more than a mere tribute to the star and her life. It is also a reminder of the music, time, people and events that undoubtedly determined our own lives.

 

 

FAME AFTER DEATH

 

This is all because even today Janis Joplin’s energy and passion has lost none of their potency, despite the fact it has been more than 40 years. We must bear in mind that even in our time her records are sold in more than 300 000 copies.

 

Janis was the biggest pop star at the end of the 1960-is amongst very strong competition of numerous big names and her husky singing together with her sensual and explosive performances remained bywords for blues. For example, one of them is the one at the Monterey festival where by the ironic twist of fate Janis performed on the same stage with her idols, Otis Redding and Jimmy Hendrix. Three years later all three of them will be dead. Janis wore herself out onstage much more than the others, she got into the spirit of the things she was singing to such an extent that she was and remains the most convincing of all. By moving the boundaries she paved the path for many younger singers, thusly becoming a role model for generations to come.

 

Regrettably, she reached the top of her fame after she died, when the album ‘Pearl’ was released and did not leave the top of the US charts for weeks. The movie named ‘Rose’ starring Bette Midler was made in 1979 based upon her biography; her native town of Port Arthur, from where she basically escaped during her youth, raised her a statue in 1988 and in 1995 she was admitted in Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame. Finally, in 2005 Janis posthumously got a life achievement Grammy Award.

 

  

 

 

‘Vjesnik’, 27^th October 2008.

 

 

Premiere: Musical play ‘Love, Janis’ at Komedija Theatre

 

A DYNAMIC MUSICAL PLAY

 

by

 

Mirta Spoljaric

 

Zdenka Kovacicek, embodying the musical core of Janis Joplin emits energy, strength and self-assurance

 

 

The 1960-is pop and rock music icon, Janis Joplin, due to her unique voice end energetic performances is one of the best white singers of blues. Even today she represents the top of the pop culture.

 

‘Love, Janis’ is the newest premiere in Zagreb’s Komedija Theatre. On Saturday night it tried to give a different insight into the life of this pop star. The show, which is for this exclusive European premiere directed by Lawrence Kiiru, is Randal Myler’s 1998 off Broadway success based on the book of the same title written in 1992 by Janis’ sister Laura.

 

The thing that first comes to mind when one mentions Janis’ name is the way of life that brought on her tragic demise and this is the very thing ‘Love, Janis’ tries to leave behind. This intimate biographic tale shows the other Janis, her desires, fears, intimate questions, struggle with herself and expectations of her surroundings, childlike enthusiasm and rough growing up.

 

 

THE CHARISMATIC PERFORMANCE BY ZDENKA KOVACICEK

 

Even though the drugs and alcohol iconography imbues the whole show, it appears as the secondary story, while the real Janis speaks with the words of the letters she sent to her family and the interviews published in the media at that time. There are moments that stick most impressively out of the dramatic whole: the moments where Janis seeks her mother’s advice; asks her father to write a few words every now and then; enthusiastically describes her performances to her sister; asks her family to come to San Francisco; only they never do or longs for her lost love (a certain David) to who she might have been the one.

 

Janis Joplin begins her story on Zagreb’s stage embodied in Zdenka Kovacicek, a singer who after 50 intensive years on musical stage, bears such energy, strength and self-confidence that it is comparable only to a very few on our musical stage, if any at all.

 

She bends over the young Janis like the shadow of today, she actively follows her thoughts commenting them at the same time. She also takes the burden that is the lightest to her, namely, the musical performance.

 

Together with the backstage band (Branko Bogunovic-Pif, Tomas Krkac, Neven Mijac, Kreso Rendic and Darko Krznaric) that made a splendid job, the whole show rests on Zdenka Kovacicek’s performance charisma. Her bursting onstage energy is truly amazing, even though it does have a touch of vocal tiredness at the end of the show in the improvisational demanding hit song ‘Me and Bobby McGee’.

 

 

SKILFUL AND SMOOTH DIRECTING WORK BY LAWRENCE KIIRU

 

The young Janis is played by Marija Boric who showed a fine acting talent and a decent singing capability in her first performance for a Komedija Theatre production. The acting and the singing parts of the show go one after another and are very well directed into a whole that smoothly goes through Janis’ life i.e. connects some of the important moments from her biography.

 

Not a single moment of this 2-hour show will be tiring to the audiences, since the director very cleverly leads the story from the start to its finish, when the two Janis blend together in a performance on the open stage with the band. The only way to make the ending more effective would be to replace the voice from the speaker announcing the death of Janis Joplin with that of Zdenka Kovacicek who is indeed the future projection of the singer who died prematurely.

 

During the show the steps in the middle divide younger Janis’ world made known in her letters from that of the onstage performance, with two linens behind which one can see the band and on which Janis’ photographs are shown during the show.

 

The simple and effective scene design is by Dragutin Broz and the costumes in the style of the 1960-is by Marijana Zagorec. One must also mention two supporting roles: Jasna Palic-Picukaric and Davor Svedruzic as the reporters.

  

 

 

 

‘Kulisa.eu’, newspaper for the performing arts, 26^th October 2008

 

 

LIVING THE MUSIC UNTIL THE VERY END

 

by

 

Irena Paulus

 

‘Love, Janis’, a musical story somewhat hastily devised and put onstage, opened on October 24^th and 25^th (preview and opening night) the new musical season of Zagreb’s Komedija Theatre in a rather unconventional way (this review refers to the opening night performance on the 25^th October). Those unfamiliar who expected a musical under the above title were quite mistaken. This is a musical play; one can even call it a biographical monodrama with musical numbers (mono-since the plot is carried by a single character, the famous singer Janis Joplin). This piece was devised and adapted by Randal Myler based on the book of the same title by Laura Joplin. It was put on stage for Zagreb’s audiences by Lawrence Kiiru, a Kenyan director who became Zagreb’s permanent citizen and a few years ago was also responsible for directing Komedija Theatre’s production of Pam Gems’ ‘Piaf’.

 

The plot can be followed by the easily recognizable, repetitive pattern where music has a different part than in the classical musical: the musical numbers are strictly divided from the acting ones – like two worlds separated from each other with no points of contact. The centre plot concerns letters that Janis wrote to her parents from the beginning of her career and her first musical steps in San Francisco. Besides these letters that are spoken aloud to the audience, Janis’ life is also traced through short interviews she gave by turns to two reporters. These intimate moments from her private life exchange with the pictures of her public performances. Hence the background of the theatrical stage features another stage where the ‘old’ Janis has her performances – Janis the icon who outlived herself.

 

This intimate-public core made it possible for Janis to be shown in a double manner. The stage Janis is sung by Zdenka Kovacicek, one of our most explosive, unconventional and most expressive rock, blues and soul singers. She is indeed an excellent choice, especially if one bears in mind that this show made it possible for her to celebrate her own timeless quality – 50 years of acknowledged artistic work. But even though the booklet points out that Kovacicek has big theatre experience (her role of the crone Ursa in the rock opera ‘Gricka vjestica’ is particularly emphasized), her acting experience for this kind of show where one character carries the whole weight is still insufficient. This is particularly clear at the beginning when she was alone onstage – minus her songs, her band and her alter-ego, the actress Marija Boric.

 

However, this was felt only during the introduction, since both the show and the director wanted interweaving of the current events (what Janis is going through now) and the future (what the icon now in the role of the Goddess of Wisdom observes in her own life). Two periods of time and two monologues take place at the same time onstage, which gives them particular liveliness and covers the predictable pattern structure of Randal Myler’s work.

 

On the other hand, Marija Boric played her acting part in a truly tremendous way. The actress showed the doubts, inside emotions, fears and worries that Janis did not show onstage but rather write about them in letters sent to her not too caring parents, in a totally free manner. Boric embodied the character of the young, rebellious girl, immature yet full of desire to fully and to the very limits lives her own music, despite of her own vices (drugs and alcohol). Due to the fact Marija’s singing abilities are pretty solid, yet they cannot match those of Zdenka Kovacicek, the actress sings only several of Janis’ hit songs, even though she did get the chance to sing some of them with the unsurpassed Zdenka. Overall, the director had an excellent idea for the two Janis – the singer and the actress – not to compete at all, but rather complement each other in a way that each of them does what they do best.

 

Besides the two Janis, two reporters have cameo appearances onstage. These are two non-singing roles, so for them it was the acting ability that mattered. Jasna Palic-Picukaric was an excellent choice for the role of the clumsy female reporter at the beginning of the show: her task was to transform the clumsy reporter into a refined one. Indeed, her character becomes a career-driven woman who works for an esteemed TV network and does not care for anything (when naming the celebrities that died, including Janis, Jasna Palic-Picukaric shows that her reporter is only interested in her own appearance and breakthrough in the media world). The male reporter is altogether different (played by the tremendous Davor Svedruzic). He talks to Janis as with a human being, warns and advises her. His goal is not to get the polished answers (which, as one can see in the show, she never gave), but to get to know her as a young woman made out of flesh and blood - that is, to present her to the public in a way the show ‘Love, Janis’ also strives to do.

 

All things considered, the musical play ‘Love, Janis’ is solidly devised and performed – I am certain it thrilled all Janis Joplin fans. One should also mention the band that fitted in very well, comprised of Branko Bogunovic-Pif (electric and acoustic guitars, back vocal); Tomas Krkac (bas guitar, back vocal); Neven Miac (mouth organ, guitar, back vocal); Kreso Rendic (drums) and Darko Krznaric (piano, organ and back vocals). I must notice, however, that their song performances were too loud. Their decibels would be better suited for a stadium, an arena or any other place that can accommodate large number of dancing audiences. Komedija Theatre is small, so the sound should be adjusted to the size of the space and to the show. After the great but loud and explosive song performances, the dialogue sounded too quiet – it took some time for the ears to get used to the new sound level. This presented a bother, since going out to see a show is not the same as going out to see Zdenka Kovacicek’s rock concert. As far as the rest is concerned, I can only give it the highest praise.

 

 

 

 

 

Extract from Zdenka Kovacicek’s interview ‘My life is interesting without the scandals’ by Doris Zivkovic

 

 

 

The latest musical where you play the lead got many accolades and some critics claim that you are the only musician able to imitate the legendary blues singer Janis Joplin with your unique vocal and top interpretations.

 

 

‘Love, Janis’ the musical is based upon an autobiography written by Janis’ sister Laura Joplin in 1992, based on the letters Janis regularly sent to her family. Randal Myler wrote his Broadway hit show based on that book. With these letters and Janis’ music we keep track of her short and turbulent life that ended when she was 26.

 

 

Are you sorry that you didn’t choose acting as your main profession?

 

I am certainly sorry that I didn’t attend the Drama Academy and became a professional actress, but I was too busy with singing and touring.

 

 

How did you develop your acting potential?

 

I did it on courses with the late leading man of Gavella Theatre, Kresimir Zidaric. We did comic acts together and in the end the show ‘The Wedding Anniversary’. He even entrusted me the role of Eva in Miroslav Krleza’s play ‘Vucjak’. This was sufficient for our renown TV director Anton Marti to invite me to an 1-hour TV show ‘This is also me’ were I performed disguised as Marilyn Monroe, Liza Minnelli and Marlene Dietrich.

 

 

 

 

‘Jutarnji list’, 2^nd November 2009

 

 

 

ZDENKA FOR ALL SEASONS

 

by

 

Zeljko Slunjski

 

 

 

 

 

‘Rock is my life, jazz is my passion and theatre my big love.’ This is the phrase Zdenka Kovacicek repeats quite often these days while talking to reporters. She marked half the century of her remarkable career a few weeks ago with a concert in ‘Zvonimir Bajsic’ TV studio, accompanied by The Big Band of The Croatian National Television, which was broadcasted live, and last Saturday onstage Komedija Theatre by appearing in the musical ‘Love, Janis’.

 

Her career is remarkable not by its longevity, even though it is respectable to be singing for 50 years, or popularity, even less by earning large sums of money, but by its artistic integrity and consistency to her musical choice that has no tradition here, since jazz is exclusively reserved for the connoisseurs. Also she is the mother of the Croatian rock music. During these past decades she had her share of crisis, hard times that were even related to money, so if the lady from the Street of Sv. Duh had chosen to become more commercial, it would have certainly brought more light into her everyday life. But if she had made concessions or gave in to big heads from the world of music, she would have let herself down and, in her own words, it would not be her anymore.

 

AN ALIEN OR A DRAGON

 

In the past few days she has been receiving accolades from different sides, both the unknown and familiar people, plus she also became a discovery to her own friends. Zdenka is really, as one of her hit songs goes, ‘living her dream’. After watching her anniversary concert on TV, Adica Dobric Jelaca, a long time musical editor of the Croatian radio, send her an sms that said ‘You are an alien!’, but after she saw her onstage Komedija Theatre she exclaimed ‘No, you are a dragon!’ One of the calls also came from the esteemed Croatian singer Gabi Novak and her son, the jazz musician Matija also sent her an sms ‘Best of luck, Zdenka. Love, Matija’. A lovely Kinderstube when the youth is so complimentary to the maturity, as the elderly residents of Zagreb would say. Visnja Korbar, another legendary Croatian singer rose from her seat at Komedija Theatre and yelled ‘Bravo!’ to her best friend, not withholding her enthusiasm for Zdenka’s ease in moving onstage, the freshness of her voice that is unusual for their mature age and her energy that remains unsurpassed for all of her younger colleagues.

 

Who would have ventured to guess back in 1957, on a very popular singing contest ‘The First Applause’, that a 13-year old girl who won that contest by singing a duet ‘Sugar Time’ with her school friend Nada Zitnik, would later become Croatia’s singing icon. It was all a coincidence, not a thoughtful act, since Zdenka was pretty shy. The two elementary school girls would sing the songs they heard on Radio Luxemburg during their school time with ‘la, la, la…’ When the word came of ‘The First Applause’ contest, Nada, the braver of the two, went and enlisted herself and Zdenka. They won and became a teen sensation. They were called ‘the sparrows of Zagreb’. The two girls twittered better and better and soon recorded a single LP (the only available record format at that time) by covering the American hit song ‘I want you, I need you’.

 

 In those days Zagreb had several popular dance gatherings. Zdenka and Nada went every Saturday from one to the other and sang their two songs, since they didn’t have more and everywhere they went, they caused ‘Saturday night’s fever’. In a year they doubled their repertoire, continued to make records and enjoyed their popularity. Their songs were composed by Stjepan Mihaljinec, Milivoj Körbler and Alfi Kabiljo. The confirmation of their success followed on the 1960 Opatija Festival where Duo Hani (as they were known) won the award with Körbler’s song ‘Djevojcice’ (‘Little girls’) that became a hit, especially the chorus ‘u pola dva, u pola dva…’ (‘at half past one, at half past one...’). On the 1962 Zagreb festival they sang ‘Andrija, super momak si ti’ (‘Andrew, you’re one great guy’) as the established stars. Since Zdenka was underage, her father Martin accompanied her on her performances. Zdenka’s fees were bigger than his own, so Zdenka could afford both him and her mother Matilda hand-made shoes, good clothing and she bought herself her first tape recorder.

 

Through her high school days Zdenka was an excellent student, but very often she came to her classes directly from the stage or night performances, sleepy and dead-tired, so her schoolmates would often hide her in the last row so she could catch a bit of sleep.

 

 

 

 

THE GIRL FROM KUPSKA STREET

 

Zdenka spent her early childhood in Zagreb’s Martinovka area, in Kupska Street. Her mother was the first to spot her talent, so as a 5-year old she enrolled her in The Pioneer Theatre that was led by the renowned theatrical teachers. Like other children, Zdenka was also fascinated with Zvjezdana Ladika.Truda Bach was her solfeggio teacher and since her family flat was too small for a piano, Zdenka learned to play the accordion. She played a girl in ‘The happy days’ and Gretel in ‘Hansel and Gretel’, daisy in ‘Snow tale’ and she also played a Chinese princess. With this theatre (later renamed Youth Theatre) she travelled across Europe, performing in West Berlin and Sweden. Many renowned Zagreb actors also started in this theatre: Richard Simonelli, Slavica Jukic and Djimi Jurcec. Zdenka spent 12 years there and as a girl played a mouse in a play which was recorded for TV in Zagreb’s first TV studio.

 

Duo Hani went their separate ways in 1964. Leo Parte, the musical manager, heard them in Zagreb and invited them to come to Vienna. Zdenka’s parents were not too impressed by the fact their only daughter is sharing a stage in Vienna with the biggest stars like Peter Kraus and Bill Haley, who wrote ‘Rock around the clock’, the first dance rock and roll and took Nada and Zdenka to his European tour as the first act.

 

Zdenka’s father, Capricorn like his daughter, had different ideas about her life. A secure job with working hours. Least of all, he did not expect his daughter to fall in love in Vienna. Due to her singing, Zdenka was even late to turn in her high school final paper in arts, with the subject matter in architecture, so she took it to her teacher’s home, asking her to receive her. To pacify her parents, she even went to collage becoming a fresher in foreign commerce and leaving it at that, since her singing career kept expanding. While many people here are only getting acquainted with learning through life, Zdenka started to apply this long time ago.

 

 

THE EUROPEAN WANDERINGS

 

The girls left Vienna for Germany and started to perform in American clubs. Zdenka got infected with jazz there while listening to black voices and comprehending that soul music is her cup of tea. The Croatian music critic Drazen Vrdoljak noted once that ‘Zdenka’s European wanderings in 1960-is were an investment rather then loss of time that caused her to miss witnessing and participating in growing up of the whole generation on Croatian musical scene’.

 

In the meantime, both ‘sparrows of Zagreb’ fell in love in musicians and married. Zdenka’s heart was won with his Viennese charm by Rudi Kamperski, son of Vienna’s State Opera ballerina and the renowned Viennese musician of the same name. Since Nada’s husband was also a musician, they even considered forming a joint band, but their musical preferences were different. Zdenka got more and more attracted to jazz, while Nada preferred pop songs. Their marriages meant the end of Duo Hani.

 

Zdenka and Rudi formed a band entitled ‘Maraschinosi’ and she continued her singing career. She lived a speedy tempo, in hotels, performing in prestigious clubs and renowned ski centres, like Arosa and St. Moritz. She sang in English, German, Russian and even Hebrew. She also signed a contract with the Intercontinental chain of hotels. While singing in Beirut, she became trapped due to breaking out of the war. She and Rudi barely managed to find a plane for Athens, while the musicians remained in Beirut.

 

The second half of Duo Hani has been living in Hamilton, Canada for years. Nada’s family regularly informs her of Zdenka’s activities and sends her press clippings. She and Zdenka talk regularly on the phone, exchange emails and obligatory Christmas greeting cards.

 

Zdenka spent 8 years married to Rudi Kamperski, until 1972, while her official divorce came through in 1987. The disagreements were of both professional and private nature. They did not have children. He has been living with his second wife in Sweden and he and Zdenka have no contact.

 

 

RETURNING TO CROATIA IN 1970

 

 Zdenka came back to Croatia in 1970 with no intention of staying. She was offered to perform in the 1970 Opatija festival with a song ‘Zbog jedne davne melodije’ (‘Long Time Ago Melody’), which she sang in alternation with her friend Visnja Korbar. She won the jury’s first award and that attributed to Zdenka’s decision to remain in Zagreb.

 

Drazen Vrdoljak also wrote: ‘The mature and balanced performance of ‘Long Time Ago Melody’ could ensure her with endless string of jury awards for interpretation on all the known and future domestic festivals, but her performer instinct resisted the status of the golden calf of pop music. In return, it appears she jumped at the formation of the alternative festivals, like Boom in Ljubljana, where in 1973 she felt more at home with the rock trio ‘Nirvana’ and their joint song ‘Klik tema broj jedan’ (‘Click theme number one’). By the middle 1970-is Zdenka’s position in the rock community of the former Yugoslavia became unchallenged as the most suited response to Dado Topic’s charisma and that image remains one of the components of her stage appearance until today.’

 

As soon as she returned to Zagreb in 1970 she was taken by rock and in Kulusic club she frequently collaborated with Bosko Petrovic. Her chosen job soon became an organised business in which she didn’t manage all that well and as she lived a life of a rocker, she also had her bohemian phases. She also went on long tours in the former USSR, from Moscow to Vladivostok, Irkutsk and the Chinese border, bringing in her performances a touch of the west trends. She wend wild, enjoyed the champagne and if the company was good she could empty the bottle of vodka until dawn.

 

 

THE WORRIED FATHER

 

  Zdenka’s father, who was one of the executives at ‘Gredelj’ company, was rather sceptical towards everything that was happening to his daughter. In the meantime they moved from a flat to a house, opposite the entrance to Zagreb’s oldest hospital, and he often said his daughter will end up on a street corner as a beggar. To assure an amount of security, he intended the ground floor of the house to be a catering establishment. There Zdenka opened a pizza bar and made pizzas for many curious individuals with her hands burned up the elbows. She rented that place later and today it is a bar.

 

She turned a new page in her career and found great friends and musical collaborators in Vanja Lisjak and his trio. One of her signature songs remains ‘Zuta Ruza’ (‘Yellow Rose’), which does not belong to the genre that made Zdenka famous and esteemed, but that was followed by new songs.

 

She sang Slavica Maras’ poems from her book ‘Konstatacija jedne macke’ and made an LP entitled ‘Frka’ (‘Fuss’). For her third CD, at the end of the 1980-is, ‘Love is A Game’, with music by Dalibor Paulik and English lyrics by Dubravko Stojsavljevic, she prepared an international promotion. She also made 2 CDs with The Vanja Lisjak Trio, ‘Happy Jazz’ and ‘Dolazi 1999. godina’ (Here comes the year 1999’).

 

 

A WOMAN FOR ALL SEASONS

 

Zdenka recognised the sincerity of making in the young composer Marko Tomasovic and he became her bridge with the new, younger generations with his song ‘Zena za sva vremena’ (‘Woman for all seasons’). The bond became even stronger with Zdenka winning Zagreb festival with ‘Vrati se u moje dane’ (‘Come back into my days’). She also appeared on Dora (Croatian song contest for Eurovision) singing ‘Ja zivim svoj san’ (I’m living my dream’) and got a Porin Award for the best vocal interpretation. And her dream is 9 studio albums in 5 decades of singing career. During the summer months Zdenka does not shirk from singing out in the open stages of the Adriatic Coast accompanied only by Branko Bogunovic-Pif on guitar. Two of them are a guarantee for an evening of artistic delight. In the meantime, Zdenka did not give up on her passion for travelling. For 15 years she went sailing once or twice a year with a motor boat ‘Dalmatia’ and visited Scotland, England and the whole Mediterranean.

 

Onboard, for the foreign clientele, she performed not only as a singer but as an animator who could perform her task spotlessly, due to her acting skills and the knowledge of several languages. Travelling enriches the life, she often said, just like music. For the latter, nothing is too hard for Zdenka.

 

She really does live the music and if someone phones her at 2 am and suggests she should come and sing somewhere in an hour, Zdenka will not complain but get dressed up, get to her car and rush.

 

These days she has been performing in Austria with two bands, one in Graz and the other in Klagenfurt and at one time the former Austrian chancellor Franz Vranitzky invited her sailing with his friends on Werthersee. She fulfilled his wish and sang the world standard ‘Sweet Georgia Brown’. When in 2005 the former Russian president Mikhail Gorbachev celebrated incognito his 75^th birthday at Zora Hotel in Primosten, Croatia with only 12 guests including the Croatian president Stipe Mesic, Zdenka entertained them with The Vanja Lisjak Trio. She sang on fluent Russian ‘Dark Eyes’, ‘Podmoskvskije velera’, ‘Kaljinka’ and ‘Cupcik’. When they heard Zdenka’s voice the guests stopped eating their dinners and curiously, without blinking, watched the lady whose vocal range of several octaves brought a touch of Russia to Adriatic.

 

When in the 1990-is Zdenka got a new career takeoff, somewhere deep inside her a love flame for the theatre began to ignite. It has been flickering ever since 1979 when she played the role of Ursa the hag in the rock opera ‘Gricka Vjestica’ for more than 200 performances.

 

 

ON THE THEATRICAL STAGE

 

After finding out that Zagreb’s Bagatella Theatre holds acting classes, Zdenka instantly contacted Marija Kohn, the renowned Croatian actress and patiently learned the craft with her. Zdenka’s way of pronouncing sentences was also felt at the beginning of ‘Love, Janis’. She chose for her final exam before Marija Kohn a monologue by Mary Queen of Scots. Without a doubt, a brave choice.

 

Zdenka improved her acting skills on courses with the late Kresimir Zidaric, actor of Zagreb’s Gavella Theatre. They did comic acts together and in the end the show ‘The Wedding Anniversary’. He even entrusted her the role of Eva in Miroslav Krleza’s play ‘Vucjak’. This was sufficient for the renown TV director Anton Marti to invite Zdenka to a 1-hour TV show ‘This is also me’ were she performed disguised as Marilyn Monroe, Liza Minnelli and Marlene Dietrich. This was the crown of their long collaboration.

 

The year 2002 saw Zdenka’s collaboration with the renown director Damir Zlatar Frey in ‘Slovensko stalno gledalisce’ in Trieste, Italy, where she played the lead in the rock opera ‘Princesa na zrnu graha’ (‘The princess and the pea’). Once again she wowed the audiences and the critics in Slovenian, Italian and Croatian press.

 

 

Today Zdenka selflessly helps her neighbourhood’s Kindergarten teachers by participating in children’s workshops and preparing pieces like ‘Hrvatska Prica’ (‘Croatian Story’), ‘Segrt Hlapic’ (‘Hlapic the Apprentice’). She also always accepts the invitations from St. Joseph’s home for elderly persons and on their annual March day she and her TV partners do ‘dancing with the stars’, proving in that way she is indeed a woman for all seasons when it comes to keeping fit and being skilful.

 

She never leaves her home without make up or looking scruffy, knowing there will always be curious eyes upon her when she walks down the street. 20 years ago she did a plastic surgery on her nose in the late Bosko Milojevic’s practice and that is all when it comes to her experience with the seeming youth. She is the obligatory visitor to dr Saja Gasovic who does her teen lifting, thusly returning her muscle tonus. Her dog, the 14-year old Maltese Dorfi, is keeping her fit. If during their walk they stumble upon a lost dog, it will spend the night at Zdenka’s and tomorrow she will take steps for him to be taken care of.

 

                                                                                                                 

Translated by: 

MARIJAN BOSNAR