Evening of Kaštela Stories and Anecdotes Once Again Delights the Audience in Gospojska Štrada

Gospojska Štrada in Kaštel Sućurac was once again too small last night for everyone who wanted to experience the “Evening of Kaštela Stories and Anecdotes” live. This traditional event is organized as part of the Kaštela Cultural Summer by the Kaštela City Library. On the natural stage next to the oldest defensive fortress on the Kaštela coast, built back in 1392, this year’s Evening was attended by numerous locals and visitors from surrounding towns. They kept smiles on their faces throughout the two-hour program, which featured a mix of local Kaštela stories and anecdotes (glende i batude — true humorous tales from Kaštela’s past), jokes, sketches, recitals, and traditional Dalmatian songs.

Musical Opening and Young Guardians of the Čakaviano Dialect

As always, the evening opened with the song Ča je život vengo fantažija, after which Nedo Kovačev, Miroslav Miše, Marija Šantić Miše, and Radenko Lovre Jokić performed Falile se Kaštelanke. This was followed by a recital in the Sućurac Čakaviano dialect, Kaštelanski znamen, written by Renata Dobrić and performed under the direction of Marijana Jerkunica by the Drama Group of the Kaštela City Library, featuring Frane Anzulović, Ena Bakotin, Bartul Božin, Gita Katić, Doris Leskur, Mihaela Leskur, Marta Markov, Leona Šimunović, and Luce Županović.

After welcoming words from library director Renata Dobrić and her expression of gratitude to the young members of the GKK Drama Group, Ivica Žegarac Žuti made the audience laugh with his introduction explaining “what glende and batude are,” accompanied by a few short anecdotes to warm up the crowd.

The Play and the Unmissable “Master of Stories and Anecdotes”

The central part of the program belonged to the play Teško je u Kaštilima ostarit a ne poludit (“It’s Hard to Grow Old in Kaštela Without Going Crazy”), also written by Renata Dobrić and performed by the GKK Drama Group. This humorous story about life, daily worries, and joy in Kaštela, told in authentic Čakaviano, delighted the audience. The roles of the grandfather and grandmother were played by Josip Jerkunica and Mirta Bakotin, while the grandchildren were portrayed on stage by Jure Anzulović, Tena Anzulović, and Đana Doljanin.

Ivica Žegarac Žuti then continued reciting Sućurac anecdotes, this time about local resident Petarac and others, once again demonstrating why Renata Dobrić calls him the “master of stories and anecdotes” and why his humor remains “always relevant.”

Stand-Up Guests and a Journey into the Past

Guests of the evening, Josip Škiljo and Tomislav Primorac from SplitskaScena, provided an extra dose of laughter and modern humor, entertaining the crowd with a hilarious take on communicating with construction workers and comparing life past and present. Marijan Grbavac from the Proložac Drama Association also brought laughter with humorous stories from Imotski. At the audience’s request, he retold several anecdotes he performs every year, and the crowd laughed just as hard as if hearing them for the first time.

Between performances by actors and storytellers, Nedo Kovačev, Miroslav Miše, Marija Šantić Miše, and Radenko Lovre Jokić transported the audience back to “older times” with Dalmatian songs. At the end of the evening, they sent the crowd home in high spirits with the classic song Svako naše malo misto.

Stage Design Bringing Kaštela Heritage to Life

Anamarija Kelava and Jere Alfirević, great enthusiasts of their hometown’s cultural and historical heritage, helped recreate the authentic atmosphere as they do every year. With their help — using numerous old tools, dishes, utensils, and props once used daily by “our elders” — Gospojska Štrada became a space reflecting life as it was more than a century ago.

Preserving Tradition and Announcement for Next Year

“Year after year, the Evening of Kaštela Stories and Anecdotes gathers more and more visitors who want to take a charming and nostalgic look into the lives of older generations from Kaštela. This year, through the play and anecdotes, we remembered how challenging it was back then—just as it is today—to ‘grow old in Kaštela while keeping one’s sanity,’ because with good humor, song, and great company, everything is easier to bear. This event, which we have been organizing since 2013, aims to preserve Kaštela’s historical anecdotes, authentic Čakaviano expressions, intangible heritage, and a way of life that is slowly fading away,” emphasized Renata Dobrić, director of the Kaštela City Library, author, screenwriter, host of this year’s event, and founder of the program.

Admission to the event — traditionally held in late August or early September near the end of the Kaštela Cultural Summer under the auspices of the City of Kaštela, the Kaštela Tourist Board, and numerous media outlets — was free for all visitors. The Kaštela City Library announced that the Evening of Kaštela Stories and Anecdotes, as one of its most beloved events, will take place again next year.

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