The first performance was conducted by Gotovac himself, and he felt that the opera was nicely received by the audience. In "Novosti" (hr), described the opera in superlatives, and in "Belgrade Pravda" Stražičić shared this positive sentiment. An often-quoted dismissive opinion ("And again a Croatian composer wrote an opera in vain") allegedly found in Lujo Šafranek-Kavić's review in "Jutarnji list", a Zagreb-based newspaper, has been found by recent research to be a fabrication. The actual review was generally very positive, with Šafranek-Kavić giving particular praise to Gotovac's score, while having reservations about the quality of the libretto.