“Eskulap – Anatomical Ex-Machine” is a satirical rhymed epic, written in April 2020 during the curfew in Serbia. It is rooted in real events related to the pandemic and the Serbian political scene, specifically the crisis headquarters, but it is also a phantasmagorical portrayal of the overall situation in this region. The epic’s plot takes place in the era of the coronavirus pandemic at a medieval court. It follows the dilemma of Dr. Eskulap regarding whether to risk and learn everything about the disease or to remain loyal to the emperor while losing his dignity. The emperor, on the other hand, calculates his relationships with the doctor who suggests quarantine, and with the church that opposes quarantine during Easter. Dr. Eskulap presents his 34 vertebral bones to the emperor, but then an visibly angry priest (Archimandrite) appears, and the doctor hides in an ossuary. There, a voice from a barrel asks him to give it a drink, promising to reveal its identity. After giving it a drink, the first of three hoops on the barrel breaks, revealing an adventurer from Hungary who is the “father of the coronavirus.” After giving it a drink again, the second hoop breaks, and Eskulap learns about the adventurer’s escapades, his romance, and his agreement with the Bat, as well as the development of the virus from the 13th century when he sailed to distant China with Marco Polo until his imprisonment in the ossuary. The doctor refuses to give it a drink for the last time, thus setting it free, and obediently returns to the emperor without learning the ultimate truth. During Eskulap’s stay in the ossuary, a series of scandals occur at the court, with the main events revolving around collecting scattered vertebrae and the emperor’s diplomatic agreement with Archimandrite. The play concludes with the emperor returning 22 vertebrae to the doctor, which is almost two-thirds of the 34. According to mythology, Eskulap is mysteriously rewarded by the adventurer for two broken hoops on the barrel but is punished with spondylosis for the last unbroken hoop. The secret of the thirty-fourth vertebra is revealed when it glitters on the finger of a court lady. The play is concluded by the court jester in a whimsical epilogue.

Performed by: Mila Manojlović and Nesim Hrvanović