Eda – the Rusjan Brothers Story

Most everyone born in the territory of the former Yugoslavia knows our first aviator Edvard Rusjan, who crashed at the young age of 25 and became the first Slovenian, Yugoslavian and Austro-Hungarian casualty from flying. But few know that his success was also the work of his older brother Josip, who was indeed the initiator and constructor of their planes, but was afraid of flying and ended up forgotten after Edvard's death. Edvard, however, with his
rise and fall, became and remained “the eternal youth”, the air god, who rose in the air more than he could ever have had he stayed alive, and left his brother way down below, forgotten and overwhelmed by guilt.

An ancient story of courage and fear, a story of two brothers, one of whom is victorious and the other a victim. Who is Cain and who Abel?

The performance follows a young woman who, while looking for her roots, stumbles upon the Rusjan brothers story, through which the questions open about her own life: how much are we willing to risk when making life choices, and how much to compromise because of circumstances, fear, responsibility? When, how, and if at all do we want to step across the line that separates a mediocrity from a winner? Are those at the top there by chance?

Neda R. Bric's performance Eda is the final performance for her master's degree in theatre directing at the Academy of Theatre, Radio, Film and Television (University of Ljubljana) under the mentorship of Matjaž Zupančič.