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2 november december 3. OSZMI Merlin Színház Millenáris Teátrum Trafó Katona József Színház Kamra Szkéné Vidám Színpad Thália Régi Stúdió Csiky Gergely Színház Kaposvár Stúdió K Színház Sirály Bakelit M.A.C. Örkény István Színház magyar english

3 31 Introduction About us The 6 th! It is festival time again, and now it is for the 6 th time. The date has changed from April to November, but our ambitions are the same. From now on, we hope to organise the festival every year at the end of November. Our aim is to bring pathfinder performances and creators that have been unknown to theatregoers in Budapest and, at the same time, show pathfinder productions of our own to foreigners visiting the festival. Following in the steps of Spain and Russia, this year s honorary guest is Israel, accompanied by visiting performances from Canada, Romania, Germany and Russia. By coincidence, or maybe not so much so, women came to the forefront this year: Virág Erdôs, Gianina Carbunariu, Hadar Galron and Réka Szabó. The programme is full of novelties and revolutionary ideas, and we are excited to see how it will be received. We hope we will make new names stick, and similarly to Schimmelpfennig, René Pollesch and Gianina Carbunairu will be the new favourites of Hungarian audiences. Szilágyi Mária Festival Director Contemporary Drama Festival Budapest What is drama today? What role does the script have in the theatre? Are there still dramas in the classic sense? What are modern scripts like? Who are today s dramatists? We keep on asking questions and looking for new answers. We introduce contemporary modern performances to foreign audiences and the other way around. We believe in the necessity of constant cultural blood transfusion and the importance of keeping your eye opened all the time. We would like if contemporary Hungarian dramatists were known abroad, too. We want dialogue and cooperation. We also believe in fate. We organise rehearsed readings, translation seminars and meetings with the audience. We invite foreign translators who translate contemporary Hungarian plays into their own language. This year, we are organising a workshop for Hebrew translators, in connection with the Israeli Night. We bring foreign visitors to Hungary, so that they come, look round and take something back. As in previous years, our aim is to introduce contemporary Hungarian drama and theatre to audiences abroad, to give Hungarian audiences and theatre professionals the opportunity to get to know new foreign dramas and performance styles, as well as to give a boost to theatrical training in Hungary. We would like the festival to be a professional workshop, where the focus is on key questions of contemporary drama. A festival, which casts some light on the theoretical background as well. We are trying to find the theatre of the future in the present. The festival shouldn t only provide entertainment but the opportunity to learn. Israeli programme International Seminar Visitors Programme...45 Festival Programme Supporting Programme Festivaloffice H-1094 Budapest, Bokréta u. 10. Phone/Fax: (+36 1) info@dramafestival.hu skype: cdf_budapest Patron of the Festival: Katalin Bogyay, State Secretary for International Affairs (Ministry of Education and Culture of Hungary) Members of the Jury for the : Ágnes Katalin Szûcs (Criticai Lapok), Tamás Koltai (Színház) Cover photo: Dave St-Pierre Responsible for edition: Mária Szilágyi Press: Creatív Média Bt., organiser of Contemporary Drama Festival Budapest Editor: Melinda Sôregi Layout: fekete@solid.hu English translation: Anna Tamás Print: Doba Kft. ISBN Content 30 The 6 th festival is still on but we are thinking about the 7 th

4 True questions, true answers Mikveh Israeli Programme Savyon Liebrecht Am I talking to you in Chinese? 25 november 18:00 Stúdió K Theatre Budapest, IX. Ráday u. 32. Mikveh Israeli Programme Israeli Night Rehearsed reading of contemporary Israeli plays Selectors and moderators: Anna Lakos (dramaturg, Associate of the Hungarian Theatre Museum and Institute, President of the Hungarian Centre of the International Theatre Institute, ITI) András Forgách (freelance prose writer and playwright) Cast: actors of the Studio K Theatre Director: Tamás Fodor Israeli drama in the third millennium by András Forgách Israeli drama seems to have taken a reality check. A lot of new talents appeared on the horizon, and the ghastly tradition of trying to escape the gruesome reality of everyday bombings and political standstill through US-style stand-up comedy plays is slowly fading out. Today s authors view their own country with a critical eye. They are not squeamish about delicate subjects, try to penetrate the mind of the enemy, do not only look at history from a victim s perspective, are sensitive to changes in their language, and do not only imitate existing, long-standing dramatic forms. They have discovered micro-sociologically accurate, linguistically apt modern German and Anglo-Saxon drama, bringing various contemporary characters to life, from Jewish women at the communal bath, to Palestinians in remote, rural areas, who, being victims of their own fate, are ready to betray one another, from the older generation, unable to reconcile the past with the present, to young people. Another clear sign of progress is that there are more and more commissioned plays, plays written by the director or directed by an actor. And though unauthentic methods are still present in traces, a new, fresh approach shines through. Authors do not want to please or comfort anymore but feel the urge to give true answers to true questions. Plays are no longer ramshackle structures that merely want to trumpet ideas but conform to dramaturgical rules. András Forgách Partner: The Institute of Israeli Drama Savyon Liebrecht: I am speaking to you in Chinese Fordította: Demény Eszter Hillel Mittelpunkt: The Accident Fordította: Kelenhegyi Andor Hanna Azoulay-Hasfari: Kippur Translator: Földes Miklós Savyon Liebrecht is primarily known for her prose in Israel, and, indeed, this play is an adaptation of one of her novels. The plot unfolds on two parallel timelines but in the same location. It takes place in a flat in Tel Aviv, in an area that has seen better days. One storyline runs in the present: Miri would like to sell the flat she has inherited from her parents. In the flat, she meets an estate agent, who also grew up in the neighbourhood. The other storyline runs in the past, in the mid-60 s, when Miri (then called Mirele) was a teenager. She shares the flat with her parents, both Poland Holocaust survivors. Her mother s little sister is a frequent, or rather permanent, visitor. They get entangled in a complicated, painful love-triangle, while trying to find a way to survive, forget and remember in a new country, without much success. Miri is helplessly torn between them as a child, but tries to interfere as an adult. In the present, and in retrospect, a typical Israeli problem comes apparent: the antagonism between Ashkenazi (mainly European) and Sephardic (mainly Spanish, North-African, and Middle-Eastern) Jews. The Estate Agent, Simon, is from Iraq. His whole life, he was looking up to his Ashkenazi neighbours for their cleanliness and culturedness, which had reached its peak in his unrequited love for Mirele. In return, he has received nothing but contempt and indifference. Naturally, as an outsider, he has not noticed the difficult family dynamics. When it finally does fall apart because of the overwhelming traumas, he takes care of the ailing mother, as a good son 33 Hillel Mittelpunkt The Accident Hillel Mittelpunkt is less known in Hungary, though she has been extremely successful in Israel since the 1980 s. In addition to several plays, she is author of two major screenplays, Bouba (1987) and Sahkanim (1995). Mittelpunkt s plays are austere, challenging, mostly based on personal experience and have a strong political stance. They describe the small but significant conflicts of everyday life with great accuracy. Her new play, Accident has been a great success in London. The style and the author might be unknown in Hungary, but the problem isn t. She describes with striking honesty how a car accident turns upside down the life of the main characters, a life that has been so perfectly planned to every little detail. The characters, with their individual problems and weaknesses, are forced to open up to one another after the accident, and gradually their true self is revealed. Everybody has something to hide, but it will inevitably come out. The play asks an earnest question: What is worth more, the truth or selfish desires, a comfortable, but empty and pointless life? 25 november 18:00 Stúdió K Theatre Budapest, IX. Ráday u

5 25 november 18:00 Stúdió K Theatre Budapest, IX. Ráday u. 32. Kippur Hana Azulay-Hasfari There are four grown up women: a student, an entrepreneur, a middle-aged housewife and an ultra-orthodox wife with eight children. They are sisters but they haven t met for years. Now they come back to their childhood home after the disappearance of their mother. We are in the mother s flat in the arid, southern part of Israel, Netivot. The Morocco-born religious leader, Baba Sali, was buried here, and his tomb still attracts many pilgrims. His burial was attended by more than a 100 thousand devotees. According to the legend, a soldier who was paralysed in both legs in the Yom Kippur War, fully recovered, having prayed and kissed the rabbi s hand. Thanks to Baba Sali, the town, together with the whole Negev region, has rapidly developed. Netivot is popular with poorer Moroccan immigrants. The Yum Kippur backdrop creates a special atmosphere. The religious holiday is marked by all-day praying in the synagogue, which can be heard through the window throughout the play. It is very hot in Israel in the middle of September, especially in the southern Negev Desert, and all those tensions coming to the surface in one big blow send temperatures even higher One great merit of the play is that it avoids spectacular effects and operates with very subtle methods. These scenes could be repeated in every family but usually stay behind closed doors. The play succeeds in bringing them out with striking honesty and courage. The conflicts seem to be resolved by the end of the long day. 34 they are not squeamish about delicate subjects András Forgách Israeli Programme Beit Lessin Theatre, Tel-Aviv Hadar Galron Mikveh Running time: 2 hours, with an interval With Hungarian subtitles! Hungarian Theatre Museum and Institute Budapest, I. ker. Krisztina krt november 15:00-18: november Drama Translation Workshop for students of Jewish Studies The workshop will feature bilingual reading and discussion of the following texts in Hebrew: Hadar Galron: Mikve, Hillel Mittelpunkt: The Accident Lead by: Avishai Milstein playwright, translator, director, dramaturg, artistic advisor, Beit Lessin Theatre (Tel-Aviv), director of the festival for new Israeli Drama in Tel Aviv. Participants: Students of Jewish Studies from Department of Assyriology and Hebrew, Eötvös Lóránd University, Students of Hebrew Studies from Department of Oriental and Ancient Studies, Pázmány Péter Catholic University, Students from Jewish Theological Seminary University of Jewish Studies, Hungarian translators. Public opening lectures about the Israeli Theatre Israeli modern theatre is a phenomenon unheard of in the western world: over 91% of the capable Israeli population visit regularly the wide-spraeded theatre-landscape of this small country. Rates that are envied about elsewhere, where audiences seem to leave theatres in favour of movies or sports. More than 70% of the repertoires are modern written contemporary plays. This theatre enthusiasm takes place in a culture where dramatic art was a tabu throughout the years, and in a language that was conceived as a dead language just 100 years ago. Eva Behrendt, Theater heute Lecturers: Tsipi Pines general manager and artistic director, Beit Lessin Theatre, Tel-Aviv Avishai Milstein playwright, translator, director, dramaturg, artistic advisor, Beit Lessin Theatre (Tel-Aviv), director of the festival for new Israeli Drama in Tel Aviv. Hadar Galron playwright, screenplay-writer, actress and comedian, author of Mikve Topics: History of modern Israeli theater and drama Cultural politics in Israel, with an emphasis on theatre politics. Jew, Israeli, Zionist, Hebrew-speaker : is there such an animal? Cast: Tracy Abramovici, Miriam Gabriely, Anat Magen- Shabo, Nataky Ne eman, Hadas Kalderon, Naama Shapira, Dana Schreyer, Shiri Sitton Scenery: Kinereth Kisch Costumes: Neta Haker Music: Eldad Lidor Light: Felice Ross Directed by: Micah Lewensohn First performance: 8 August 2004 Hungarian translator of the play: Dóra Zsom Supporters of the guest performance: National Cultural Fund, Israel State Secretary of Foreign Affairs Department of Cultural and Scientific Relations What is the mikve? The mikve is a ritual bath, visited by religious Jewish women, from the time they get married to their menopause. Once a month, they immerse their body to purify it following menstruation, to be able to resume marital relations with their husband. Who is Hadar Galron? She is a dramatist, screenwriter and actor. She was born in 1970 in London, to an Orthodox family. She obtained her diploma at Tel Aviv University and then took up writing and acting. She first came into focus for her role in a twocharacter comedy, as it was unusual in Israel for religious women to appear on stage at the time. Mikve is Hadar Galron s first full-length play. It opened in August 2004 at the prestigious Beit Lessin Theatre in Tel Aviv, which was founded in 1980 and specialises in contemporary plays. In the same year, it received the Israel Theatre Academy Award for Best Play. The show ran over 500 times, and was translated into English, Spanish and Czech. Galron is writing a new play for the Beit Lessin Theatre. What is the play about? Galron s play takes place in a mikve, with eight female characters. The main character, Shira, is the mikve s new employee. She is young and enthusiastic but the local orthodox community dislikes her. She is trying to build a good relationship with her boss, Shoshana, who insists on preserving the purity of the bath at all cost. Shira discovers that her predecessor drowned in the bath under mysterious circumstances. She realises she has to do something to prevent further tragedies november 19:00 Vidám Színpad Budapest, VI. ker., Révay u. 18.

6 26-27 november 19:00 Vidám Színpad Budapest, VI. ker., Révay u. 18. Hadar Galron Mikve Characters Shira: 35, is the new bath attendant at the local Mikve. She is not only younger than the average bath attendant but also an outsider; (she was not born in the religious community). She cannot take lies or hypocrisy and will always be the first to point out the king is bare until it comes to her own home Shoshana-Dvora: Senior bath attendant. She s been working in the local Mikve for over ten years and knows every religious family in the neighbourhood. She has a daughter who left the religious community and was formally cut off (excommunicated). Despite her status and preaching Shoshana secretly keeps in touch with her. Chedva: 35-40, a battered woman, married to one of the popular public activists of the religious community. Chedva knows she must not disclose her personal problems in public in order not to ruin her husbands name and deep inside feels shame and guilt (after all maybe she s just not good enough for him?!). Hindi-Rochel: 60+. Typical rich Belgium snob. Wears an expensive and fashionable wig to hide her age (looks not over 45). Although women after menopause are not obliged to immerse Hindi comes to the mikve each month for she fears if her husband realizes there will be no more children besides their one son he may not love or touch her any more. Tehila: 19, beautiful redhead full of spunk on the one hand and fear on the other. She s always been a misfit in the orthodox community although she hasn t stop trying to do the right thing in the eyes of the Lord - and her mother Michal (or Miki): 38, a singer. Provocative and outspoken outwardly but a very warm and loving person from within. She is secular but comes to the Mikve because her husband decided lachzor bitshuva = to become religeous, and will not touch her if she won t purify herself in the Mikve. She loves her husband and is doing all she can to save her marriage and give her children a normal home... Estie: 35+, mother of six. Simple, hardworking, happy woman. Tactless; gullible and funny. Believes all she s told and everything written and somehow manages to always get the wrong end of the stick! Elisheva: 10-12, youngest daughter of Chedva cannot speak (suffers from elective mutism) The Beit-Lessin Theatre A Story of Success Among Israeli Theatres Founded at the early 80 as a humble culture-club of the Histadrut Israel s Workers Union the Beit-Lessin Theater today is the country s 2nd largest repertory theater. Named after an almost forgotten Yiddish author, the theater is the most exhilarating success-story among Israeli theaters in the recent decade, with its yearly 10 new premieres, over 30,000 devoted subscribers in Tel-Aviv alone, and hundreds of performances throughout the country. 36 Móricz Zsigmond Theatre, Nyíregyháza Virág Erdôs Attempt Running time: 60 minute, without interval With English simultaneous translation Absurd play, first performance Cast: Katalin Losonczi, Fruzsina Pregitzer, Domonkos Fellinger, Tamás Olt, Károly Tóth, Zoltán László Tóth Music: Albert Márkos Scenery: Péter Mészáros Costume: Krisztina Berzsenyi Workmates: Katalin Kovács, János Lengyel Assistant: Ágnes Fekete Directed by: László Keszég To be or not, What do I care? Long live the dead! (Song of the suicide bomber) Supporters of the performance: National Cultural Fund, József Katona Production Grant (NKÖM) English translator: Ildikó Noémi Nagy First performance: 22nd September Suicide bombing on a bus in Budapest The bomber is a young girl. This absurd play, teetering between dream and reality, reveals through her relationships the lies, lovelessness and loneliness that are so typical of today s world, and the emptiness that results in that liberating explosion. Virág Erdô s s vision is expressed in an original poetic language and tells about the make-believe life of make-believe people in a make-believe world. The chaotic relations between mother, father, husband, lover and child are revealed in flashes in the bustling cityscene: at home, on the bus, in the playground you need real courage not to turn your eyes away in horror but enjoy the grandiose smallness that is so brilliantly depict by the poet Tibor Solténszky, Criticai Lapok, October 2006 Attempt is Virág Erdôs theatrical debut. She was winner of the István Örkény Scholarship in 2004 and the Ernô Szép Prize in Attempt was first introduced to theatre audiences in June 2005 at a rehearsed reading at the Pécs Theatre Festival (POSZT), organised by the Open Forum, directed by István Pinczés. Virág Erdôs writes short stories, poems and plays. Her latest book, Eurydice, was published in 2007 by Magvetô Press. 37 Photo: Erzsébet Nagy 23 november 18:00 Merlin theater Budapest, V., Gerlóczy u. 4. Further Information: Further Information:

7 38 24 november 22:00 Katona József Theatre, Kamra Budapest, V., Ferenciek tere 4. Photo: Judit Zolka Lehotka I just arrived home to find a message from a tree on my answering machine. Finders TÁP Theatre, Budapest Running time: 70 minute, without interval With English subtitles Written by: Vilmos Vajdai and Krisztián Peer after Péter Molnár s short story, Finders. Cast: Gábor Dióssi, Béla Mészáros, Adél Jordán, Vera Sipos, Ákos Horváth, Zsolt Máthé, Gergô Kocsis, Sosa Juristovszky, Tamás Keresztes, Tibor Vécsi, Zsuzsa Járó, Ferenc Elek, Ádám Schönberger Sounds: Péter Halász, Dorka Gryllus, Nóra Parti, Szabolcs Thúróczy, András Bordi, Eszter Ónodi, László Keszég, Erika Marozsán, Viktor Bodó, Anna Szantner, András Vinnai, Péter Takátsy, Sándor Csányi, Gyôzô Szabó, Magda Auth, Tamás Turai Set: András Bartos Costume: Tamara Juristovszky Mask: Sosa Juristovszky This is a true Budapest story, and a great sound-cartoon-cinema theatre experience. People who hang out in cafés and at house parties all the time are so immersed in their busy idleness that agents of the mysterious Anguish Agency can get on with their business unnoticed. Everybody expects the solution for their problem from someone else. András, the main character, is expecting Ágnes to make his day, or Hanna. Or any girl walking past that would let herself be loved. The play is set in several Budapest locations (a café, the Millennium Metro Line, a square with Budapest s oldest statue, and elegant, airy city apartments. Real and surreal scenes follow one another, with occasional film projections. Dominant motives of the piece are love, anguish, the role of coincidence and the fact that it is impossible to really know another human being. The TÁP Theatre was founded in 1992 at the cultic Budapest night club, Tilos az Á ( Trespassing W ), TÁP standing for Tilos az Á Performance. The founders, Vilmos Vajdai and Gyôzô Szabó, experimented with forms, creating performances that were pioneering and rarely seen outside avant-garde theatres or workshops. The Everything Bad Variety Show confronted the audience with bad theatre and won the 2006 Best Performance Award at the Alternative Theatre Festival in Szeged. Finders won the 2007 Best Performance Award at the Alternative Theatre Festival in Szeged and the Critics Award for best independent performance. This summer, they embarked upon an interesting adventure at the Sziget Festival. They erected a tent and held one-minute shows with the participation of daring spectators, with a different theme every day. Beside regular variety shows, they still play the Everything Bad Variety Show, and participate at various theatre festivals. Recently, they have had a memorable performance at the Happy Art Festival in Nyíregyháza. More information and tickets: Dramaturg: Tamás Turai, Krisztián Peer, Kinga Keszthelyi English translator: János Hideg Graphic: Zsuzsi László Animation: Márton Hegedûs, Attila Kelencz Lyrics: András Vinnai, Krisztián Peer, Miklós Paizs Music: Vilmos Vajdai Lights: Krisztián Balázs Assistant: Judit Zolka Lehotka Intellectual workmate: Ádám Schönberger Video, 3D animation, graphic of background: András Juhász, Boldizsár Péter Directed by: Vilmos Vajdai Thanks for the employees of the Katona József Theatre, Attila Drobek, Szandra Sztevanovity and Katalin Varga. The radio-record was made by Péter Kulcsár and Tamás Tánczos in the Hungarian Radio s studio. The Symptoms Alibi Running time: 90 minutes, without interval With English simultaneous translation An hour and half of interrogation with lots of music and dance Directed by: Réka Szabó Performed by: István Gôz, László Kövesdi, Andrea Nagy, Márta Szabó, Anna Szantner, Dániel Szász Lights&Set: Attila Szirtes Adaptation: Krisztián Peer Music: Balázs Barna, Albert Márkos Costume: Enikô Bodnár A play co-produced with the Thália Theatre, with guest performances by Anna Szandtner and Márta Szabó. Réka Szabó, choreographer and director, has been experimenting with theatrical forms since 2002, with great success. With the help of her company, she has been trying to turn bits of the realities of everyday life into a common theatrical language. She has a degree in mathematics (in fact, she is still teaching mathematics at the Budapest University of Technology and Economics) but is working as a choreographer and runs her own company. She is one of those rare people who are in touch with everyday reality and art at the same time. Actually, the fact that she always welcomes life into art is what makes her performances so painfully real. Her company, TünetEgyüttes (The Symptoms ), includes dancers and actors alike, forming a close-knit collaboration. Their performances are the results of intensive workshops, in which Réka s co-writer, Krisztián Peer, is an ever present participant. Their latest performance, Alibi, is a playful but brutal casting, an opportunity for self-reflection and self-therapy. At the same time, it is a theatre-within-a-theatre, or the contemporary dance world turned inside out and shown in a self-reflective manner. It is a word-game, as the whole performance is a game. It is professional and clever in every detail, verbally and movement-wise alike. It starts with twisting words, expressions, proverbs, and then suddenly turns into this vision of human bodies coming to life, crumpling and coming back to life again. György Karsai, Réka Szabó does not make life-like theatre. Her (physical) theatre is life. Instead of servile, humiliated marionettes, she uses intelligent, real-life dancers. With her, we shall see things face to face, not through a glass, darkly. Krisztina Horeczky, Népszabadság, 18 May 2007 További információk: I am reflected, therefore I am. Photo: Gábor Dusa november 20:00 Thália Régi Stúdió Budapest, VI., Nagymezô u

8 40 Resign barrow! Cut my throat! Take out my liver, My liver, and my heart, Wash it in a bitter wine! Photo: Gábor Dusa 27 november 18:00 Csiky Gergely Theatre, Kaposvár Kaposvár, Place Rákóczi / mad soul beaten armies István Mohácsi János Mohácsi Márton Kovács Csiky Gergely Theatre, Kaposvár Running time: 3 hours 50 minute (with one interval) With English simultaneous translation Performed by: Sheila Boateng, Virág Csapó, László Felhôfi Kiss, Gábor Hornung, István Husztóti, Tamás Karácsony, Pál Kocsis, Zsolt Kovács, Luca Lestyán, Szilvia Mester, Balázs Mózes, Ilona Nagy, Imre Nagy, Viktor Nagy, Árpád Némedi, Katalin Patocskai, Kata Petô, Tamás Sebesi, Egyed Serf, Viktória Simon, Eszter Sipos, Zsuzsanna Száger, István Szentgyörgyi, György Székely, László Szula, Géza Tóth, Richárd Tóth, Péter Valcz, Zsuzsa Varga, Csaba Vékes Professionals (hereunder shadow cabinet): Edit Barabás, Gábor Csíkvár, Tamás Karácsony, György Kemény, Márton Kovács, Árpád Némedi, Vera Ódor, Tamás Sebesi, Tamás Rozs, Csilla Váldi, Ákos Zságer-Varga Facing the past: we are at the opening of the Gödör Klub on the 50th anniversary of the 1956 revolution, at the inauguration of the Gödör 56 monument, a time machine, used for the first time by the illustrious group of politicians. They go back in time and re-live the October events. János Mohácsi, István Mohácsi and their company recall the emblematic events of the short-lived revolution of 1956 from stories that were mostly passed down by word of mouth. Music by Márton Kovács. This monumental performance approaches the events of the recent past from the present, drawing our attention to the misunderstandings, legends and lies that surround it. This way we can look at a history that we created, and our own failure looks back at us, with all our unresolved problems and conflicts. After the opening night, the performance received huge criticism from the extreme right, because it allegedly dishonoured the memory of Ilona Tóth, a martyr of the revolution. Theatre professionals defended the Kaposvári Theatre, signed petitions and travelled to Kaposvár to protest with their presence. The nation-wide scandal was well publicised in every press medium. However, the storm died down after a year, and the performance received critical acclaim at the 2007 POSZT. Visitors of the Contemporary Drama Festival have the opportunity to decide for themselves. The creators do not intend to produce a historically accurate memorial performance, and, indeed, any theatre that takes itself seriously should never aspire to do such thing. What we witness here is not a stage reconstruction of a historic event but an attempt to understand what happened in 56. Moreover, it is the process of understanding and a collective comment on 56. Balázs Perényi, Színház, May 2007 This show would be top of the decade, even if we hadn t seen what we saw for the past three hours. Tamás Koltai, Élet és Irodalom, 19th January 2007 Further Information: Kodály Zoltán Music Elementary School s band Teacher: József Bogáthi Prompter: Bernadett Csordás Stage-manager: György Székely Assistants: Mónika Hatvani, Kata Pintér Light: Attila Dénes Movement: Péter Uray Costume: Edit Szûcs Set: Zsolt Khell Directed by: János Mohácsi First performance: 29th December Supporters of the performance: 1956 Memorial Year, National Cultural Fund Cast: Éva Enyedi, Zsófia Szamosi, Sándor Bencze, Tamás Deák, Béla Pintér, László Quitt, Szabolcs Thuróczy Musicians: Péter Bede, Antal Kéménczy, Róbert Kerényi, Csaba Sófalvi Kiss Technical crew: János Rembeczki, Tamás Kulifay, Sándor Sánta, Zoltán Gyorgyovics Pintér Béla és Társulata My Mother s Nose Running time: 80 minutes, without interval With English subtitles Vocal coach: Bea Berecz Costume designer: Mari Benedek Set designer: Péter Horgas Assistant: Kinga Szûts, Katalin Csizmadia Dramaturg: Krisztina Kovács Music: Benedek Darvas Visual and musical concept, written and directed by Béla Pintér The production and the company is supported by the Ministry of Cultural Heritage, National Cultural Found, The City of Budapest, Szkéné Theatre, The other day someone told me to my face, I was a moral insanity. Well, that really hurt my feelings, but then I had to realize he was right. But a moral insanity is not aware of being a moral insanity, and I am, so after all I can t be. So who is a moral insanity? You are! You the one just reading these lines! You, who are suffering from the world being so insensitive. You, who are a victim of your circumstances. You, who can pity yourself till you weep, although you are the most insensitive and most unscrupulous person in the world. You must be thinking: no, I m not. But that d be truly only if you thought you were! Come, see the show. It s not going to change you, but you will meet a few characters like you. And on top of it, you ll learn why we call it My Mother s Nose! Béla Pintér Béla Pintér is a surreal character. His stories seem absurd, surreal at first sight. Then you stop and think. In today s world, there is nothing surreal about the meeting of an umbrella and sewing machine on the dissecting table in fact, I would be surprised if it needed any further explanation. If you walk around in the world with your eyes opened, you will see that Pintér does not show you anything that doesn t exist. Tamás Koltai, Élet és Irodalom, 2005 Further Information: november 20:00 Szkéné Theatre Budapest, XI., Mûegyetem Rakpart 3

9 42 Photo: Eszter Gordon I m sorry, but there are limits to every joke! FINITO István Tasnádi The author honestly admits to have stolen the idea of the play from Nikolai Erdman. Running time: 3 hours, with 1 interval With English subtitles Drama and Postdramatic Theatre International Workshop Lehmann 3 december 19:00 Örkény István Theatre Budapest, V., Madách tér 6. Performed by: Imre Csuja, Anikó Für, Judit Pogány, Ferenc Lengyel, Tamás Végvári, Kriszta Bíró, László Széles, Attila Egyed, Csaba Debreczeny, Viktória Kerekes, Zsolt Máthé, Pál Mácsai Singers: Annamária Bucsi, Gabi Gál Instrumentalists: Álmos Gáspár, Károly Horváth, Máté Hegedûs, Beáta Salamon Set: Levente Bagossy Costume: Lili Izsák Lights: Tamás Bányai Gáspár Bolondin: 44 years of age, married, childless, ex-factory worker from Nagyábránd. He is no use to anyone alive but could profit from being dead, so he sells his death, again and again. This is the brief summary of István Tasnádi s play, this eclectic music-dance-zeitstück show. Directed by Pál Mácsai, the baroque stage of the Örkény Theatre is populated by such wonders as outhouses and opera singers. Different style layers build on one another, presenting a modern, youthful message that uses the original Alexandrines. Both the play and the direction are one of the most successful projects of the past few years, winners of the Pécs Theatre Festival (POSZT) and the Critics Award. Nyikolaj Robertovics Erdman s play, The Suicide, was banned from the stage for fifty years in his own country, probably because the regime has picked up the disturbing similarities, because the reality the time looked so familiar. In tragedies, time is distinctly linear or circular. In satires, slapstick comedies, comedies and all such genres, where reality and time has a bigger importance, it is almost obligatory to recreate the present time, the time we share, where we can recognise ourselves. How that comes about, whether through re-translation, re-writing or simply the director s vision, doesn t matter. It all depends on theatrical traditions, taste or talent. Contemporary performances, whether it is with the help of a new Hungarian play, a new translation, adaptation or any form of co-production, presents us with the gift of this shared time. At these special moments, author, company and spectator can finally breathe together. Breathe in a language and reality we suddenly all share. Andrea Tompa, Theatre, April 2007 Further information: Music: Károly Horváth Choreographer: Éva Magyar Professional: Tibor Pintér Dramaturg: Ildikó Gáspár Prompter: Zsuzsa Jánoska Stage-manager: Tamás Berta Assistant: Ariadne Érdi Director: Pál Mácsai English translators: Patrícia Margit, Sarah Gansher First performance: 6 January 2007 András Nagy: Theatre after Drama? For the International Seminar of Drama and Post-Dramatic Theatre Is there theatre after drama? Or, in the 3rd millennium, we can only call theatre what has already left drama behind? Is it possible to have theatre instead of drama? What if the most important theatremakers of the 20th century have created immortal this way? But how is it possible to immortalise something that is, by nature, mortal: performance? And what is the point of theatrical scripts that are only able to claim credibility within their limited existence? Professor Hans Thies Lehmann has written a cult work by stating precise questions and asking them in an extremely concrete way. His book, Postdramatic Theatre, will serve as a compass for Hungarian theatre professionals in intellectual and artistic questions. And now, we are honoured that the author himself is here in Budapest with us, because the questions he raised are very important to us and we will discuss them right here at the Hungarian Contemporary Drama Festival! During the festival, we are running an international workshop, led by Professor Hans-Thies Lehmann, for about 20 young theatre professionals from Visegrád Countries and Germany. Participants of the workshop will have the opportunity to analyse performances of the festival and discuss key concepts of postdramatic aesthetics, referring to the works of modern authors from different backgrounds, such as Robert Wilson, Jan Fabre, Peter Brook, Anatolij Vasziljev, Tadeusz Kantor, Robert Lepage, Pina Bausch, Frank Castorf or Silviu Purcarete. András Nagy, Director of the National Historical Theatre Museum and Institute, Theatrical Historian, Dramatist. During the festival, we are running an international workshop, led by Professor Hans-Thies Lehmann, for about 20 young theatre professionals from Visegrád Countries and Germany. Participants of the workshop will have the opportunity to analyse performances of the festival and discuss key concepts of postdramatic aesthetics, referring to the works of modern authors from different backgrounds, such as Robert Wilson, Jan Fabre, Peter Brook, Anatolij Vasziljev, Tadeusz Kantor, Robert Lepage, Pina Bausch, Frank Castorf or Silviu Purcarete. In the afternoon, our supporting programme includes performances and roundtable discussions that are open to the public. As a result of the cultural co-operation between Visegrád Countries, respected theatre professionals give lectures about theatrical tendencies in their respective countries, with special attention to the relationship between drama and postdramatic forms november HUNGARIAN THEATRE MUSEUM AND INSTITUTE Budapest, I., Krisztina krt. 57.

10 Lehmann november HUNGARIAN THEATRE MUSEUM AND INSTITUTE Budapest, I., Krisztina krt. 57. Programmes Public opening: 25 November 15 :00 with Professor Hans-Thies Lehmann s lecture, Postdramatic Theatre and the Tradition of Tragedy. Public roundtable discussion: 29 November 15:00 At the and of the workshop Drama and Postdramatic Theatre we organise a public roundtable discussion From Drama to Postdramatic Theatre Spotlight on Hungarian Theatre Moderators: Prof. Hans-Thies Lehmann and András Nagy. Projekt leader: Zsuzsa Berecz, student of J.W. Goethe Universität (Frankfurt am Main) dramaturgy master class Co-organiser: Anna Czékmány, OSZMI The meeting is organized and produced by the Creatív Média Literary Agency together with the following partners: the Hungarian Theatre Museum and Institute (OSZMI) Budapest, the Academy of Music and Dramatic Arts (VSMU) Bratislava, the Drama Department of the Jagello University Krakow and the Theatre Faculty of the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague (DAMU). Supporters: National Cultural Fund, Goethe Institut Ungarn, International Visegrad Fund Further information: Keresôk Visitors Programme Visitors Programme 2005 was the first such enterprise in Hungarian theatrical circles. More than 80 prominent theatre professionals registered with us. Despite our modest financial circumstances, we were able to host 42 visitors. After one week with us, they were able to form a better picture of Hungarian theatre, and its connection to the country s artistic, cultural and everyday life. Based on the positive feedback from questionnaires and personal accounts, we had the impression that the participants were satisfied with the programme, the organisation and the hospitality. What is more, the director of the Lithuanian Contemporary Drama Festival proposed to the Lithuanian Ministry of Culture to use our festival as a model. As the Hungarian Cultural Season in Germany (Ungarischer Akzent 2007) was already under planning, we invited several illustrious German theatre and festival directors, dramaturges and journalists. Following the success of the 2005 Visitors Programme, we invite 20 foreign theatre professionals, critics and festival organisers. We are preparing a special programme for them, where they learn about tendencies within contemporary Hungarian theatre. It is also important that they get to know Budapest, a city that is so hospitable towards contemporary culture, with its many different venues. With this aspect, we are trying to encourage further international co-productions as a result of the Visitors Programme. The festival will be a great opportunity for introducing contemporary Hungarian drama to our visitors and give them the opportunity to meet Hungarian dramatists, directors and representatives of several prestigious theatrical institutions. One of the most important events of the Visitors Programme is the DramaTour, co-organised by the Hungarian Theatre Museum and Institute and presented by dramaturg Eszter Harangozó. We would like to introduce the most important contemporary Hungarian plays of the past few years to our visitors. With authors and creators present, the tourguide will discuss the plays with the participants. To give a taste, selected texts from every play were translated into English. The aim of the tour is to encourage visitors to present Hungarian plays abroad. Invited Guests: Marie-Hélène Falcon, festival director - Damir Kos, Director of festival Ex Ponto Festival TRANSAMERÉRIQUES, Montréal Audronis Liuga, theatre critic, Dirk Pilz, Thetare critic, nachtkritik.de leader of New Drama Action Festival Markus Bothe, Neue Stücke aus Europa - Eva Behrendt, editor and critic of Theater Heute Theaterbiennale des Hessischen Staatstheaters, Wiesbaden Andrea Dumitru, Theatre critic and editor of Teatrul azi Justyna Golinska, Editor of Dialog theatre review journal, member of the executive committee of the Romanian Section of the International Association of Theatre Critics Dainis Grinvalds, SKATE, Latvian Contemporary Drama Festival, HOMO NOVUS, Maria Kublanova, Praktika theatre Moscow International Festival of Contemporary Theatre Jitka Sloupova, Theatre Agency Aura-Pont, Slovakia Vecsey Katalin és Martin Andrucki, Guillermo Heras, Muestra Festival Spain Bates University, USA Dr. Varda Fish, dramaturg in chief Habimah Theatre Dagmar, Walser Schweizer Radio DRS Spyros Payiatakis, theatre critic Greece Nikolina Deleva, theatre critic Bulgaria Francesca Spinazzi, Theater der Welt, art counselor 45

11 23 November 24 November 25 November 26 November 27 November 28 November 29 November 30 November 1 December 2 December 3 December 15:00 Supporting Programme Postdramatic Theatre and the Tradition of Tragedy Lecture of Prof. Dr. Hans-Thies Lehmann Hungarian Theatre Museum and Institute Supporting Programme Contemporary Israeli Drama and Theatre Lectures (in English with Hungarian translation) Hungarian Theatre Museum and Institute Supporting Programme From Drama to Postdramatic Theatre Spotlight on Hungarian Theatre Public roundtable discussion closing the international workshop Drama and Postdramatic Theatre. Hungarian Theatre Museum and Institute Kornél Hamvai: Hell D.: Pál Göttinger Merlin Theatre :00 17:00 Supporting Programme Krzysztof Pleśniarowicz: The Machine of the Dead Tadeusz Kantor s Theare of Death book display (in Hungarian!) Polish Institute kíséröprogram Female Line Talk show with the festival s female artists Sirály Pre-show talk with the playwright, Juriy Klavidiev Juriy Klavdiev: Me, the Machine Gunner Director: Irina Kerucsenko Millenáris Teátrum COMPLETE PROGRAMME 18:00 19:00 20:00 22:00 Virág Erdôs: Attempt D.: László Keszég Merlin Theatre Festival Opening Merlin Theatre Finders D.: Vilmos Vajdai Kamra Theatre Supporting Programme Israeli Night Rehearsed Reading of contemporary Israeli plays (in Hungarian!) Studio K Theatre The Frankenstein Plan D.: Kornél Mundruczó Bárka Theatre, MOBILE BOX CONTAINER THEATRE Alibi D.: Réka Szabó Thalia Theatre, Régi Stúdió Henrik Ibsen: Peer Gynt with English subtitles D.: Sándor Zsótér Thalia Theatre, Régi Stúdió Hadar Galron: Mikve D.: Michah Lewensohn Vidám Színpad Dave St-Pierre: La pornographie des âmes Bare Naked Souls Director- choreographer: Dave St-Pierre Post-show talk with the artists Trafó House of Contemporary Arts János Mohácsi, István Mohácsi, Márton Kovács: 5606 / mad soul beaten army D.: János Mohácsi Csiky Gergely Theatre, Kaposvár!! Gianina Carbunariu: mady.baby.edu D.: Gianina Cărbunariu Merlin Theatre Hadar Galron: Mikve D.: Michah Lewensohn Post-show talk with the artists Vidám Színpad János Térey: Table Music D.: László Bagossy Radnóti Theatre Supporting Programme Péter Gazdag: UnlessIf D.: Vilmos Vajdai Sirály Henrik Ibsen: Peer Gynt with English subtitles D.: Sándor Zsótér Thalia Theatre, Régi Stúdió Gianina Carbunariu: mady.baby.edu D.: Gianina Cărbunariu Post-show talk with the artists Merlin Theatre László Garaczi: Plasma Bakelit M.A.C. Supporting Programme DramaShow Book display of Rivalda drama anthology (6 PM) Reading of plays from Europe (in Hungarian!) (8 PM) Merlin Színház János Térey: Table Music D.: László Bagossy Radnóti Theatre My Mother s Nose D.: Béla Pintér Szkéné Theatre The Frankenstein Plan Phantom Pain D.: Kornél Mundruczó Based on Vasiliy Bárka Theatre, Sigarev s play MOBILE BOX D.: Irina Kerucsenko CONTAINER THEATRE Millenáris Teátrum László Garaczi: Plasma Bakelit M.A.C. 21:30 Vivisection roundtable discussion with artists of several performances of the play Plasma (in Hungarian!) Bakelit M.A.C. 19:30 René Pollesch: When can I finally go into a Supermarket and buy Everything I Need only by my good Look D.: René Pollesch Post-show talk with the artists Új Színház I am a little boy with glasses D.: Réka Pelsőczy Gödör Klub István Tasnádi: FINITO D.: Pál Mácsai Örkény István Theatre Festival Closing Spinoza House performances will be played with Hungarian subtitles or simultaneous translation. The programme is subject to change! In the main programme, Hungarian performances are played with English subtitles or simultaneous translation. International

12 48 Sometimes we do not understand everything. And let me tell you that there s no point in always trying to understand it s much better this way La pornographie des âmes Dave St-Pierre Running time: 150 minutes with 20 minutes interval la pornographie des âmes 26 November 20:00 Trafó - House of Contemporary Arts Budapest, XI., Liliom u. 41. In association with Eugénie Beaudry, Enrica Boucher, Genevieve Bélanger, Julie Carrier, Karina Champoux, Francis Ducharme, Sarah Lefebvre, Véronique Lavallée, Camille Loiselle-D Aragon, Eve Pressault-Chalifoux, Julie Perron, Marie-Eve Quilicot, Emmanuel Schwartz, Patrick Simard Alternatly: Emmanuelle Beaudoin-Bourassa, Luc Bouchard-Boissonneault, Émilie Gilbert, Alexis Lefebvre, Gabriel Lessard, Aude Rioland, Éric Robidoux. Renaud Lacelle-Bourdon, Laura Lacoste, David Laurin, Simon-Xavier Lefebvre, Sophie Dales, Gaëtan Viau, Anne Thériault, Josianne Latreille Technical director_ lighting designer: Alexandre Pilon-Guay Stage manager_ Sound technician: Benoît Bisaillon Video captation: Dave St-Pierre Video editing: Alexandre Pilon-Guay Music: Jeanne Moreau Björk Arvo Pärt Tchaikovski Bach Verdi Chopin Cold Play Rob Zombie Nina Simone Goran Bregovic Olivia Newton-John -Demon Mosque Blue Maria Callas Arianne Moffat Josh Wink. Text: Rodrigo Garcia - Yves Reynaud - Juan Pedro Guetierrez - Abdulah Sidran Cyril Collard Julie Carrier Dave St-Pierre. The performance portrays a broad sweep of human lives, relationships and feelings. It portrays the kind of intimacy that is almost never seen on stage. The choreographer does not care about what we reveal but what we hide, simply because we are afraid to be humiliated. This young Canadian, who regularly works for Cirque du Soleil, tell us everyday stories about people who experience strong emotions, such as pleasure, pain, fear, love or lovelessness. He puts people under the magnifying glass, to point out how beautiful or ugly, deep or superficial we are. And he is not beating about the bush. Dave St-Pierre is constantly searching for alternative narrative methods, methods that are new, fresh, provocative and full of humour. He draws on scripts from a very wide spectrum, from contemporary dramatist and director Rodrigo García, through author and film director Cyril Collard, to Cuban writer Juan Pedro Gutierrez, but words do not have a central role in telling a story. It is rather through gestures, projected images, carefully choreographed movement, or in the bare physicality of the dancers. The Bare Naked Souls is a unique, eclectic symbiosis of dance, theatre, text, video and music, yet it is not total art in the classic sense. The main purpose of this powerful performance is to provoke feelings by telling stories about everyday life and people, stories that are almost banal, but at the same time incredibly honest and provocative. He wants reaction, whether it is laughing, shock, rejection or total devotion. The power of Dave St-Pierre s work is in the here and now. He wants to share with both his audience and dancers, actors the feelings, whether they are real, surreal, fantastic or dreadful, that make us confused, laugh, curious or horrified. He wants to have an effect on all our senses, so he moves on an extremely wide scale. The sudden changes in the musical texture also indicate that he does not respect taboos or common norms. He draws on a wide range of musical genres, from Bach, through Bellini, to Coldplay or Björk. He is not afraid of unmasked provocation, obscenity or poetry in fact, he can combine all these within one single scene. It is difficult to squeeze his work into any distinct category. With its extravagance and expressiveness, it resembles a well-choreographed performance. I am dreaming about total humiliation. This is what I want to experiment with on stage. As if the stage was a huge window for all the voyeurs of the world. Dave St-Pierre This choreography is like a shiver that lasts forever. Shivering from the sight of mutilation. Shivering from sensual pleasure. Shivering from cold or anger. And shaking your head just like at a rock concert. Justine Desmeules, UQAM-Portail Co-producer: Agora de la danse This piece receives support from: Conseil des Arts du Canada, Conseil des Arts et des Lettres du Québec, L Agora de la danse, Tangente, le Ministere de la Culture et des Communications du Québec et le Ministere des Relations Internationales. Further information: davestpierre.populus.ch, November 20:00 Trafó - House of Contemporary Arts Budapest, XI., Liliom u. 41.

13 50 It s the National squad, mate! mady-baby.edu Teatrul Mic, Bukarest Running time: 2 hours without interval With Hungarian subtitles A show signed Gianina Cărbunariu Scenography: Alina Herescu Photo: Tudor Predescu 51 mady-baby.edu November 19:00 Merlin Theatre, Budapest Budapest, V., Gerlóczy u. 4. With: Mădălina Ghiţescu, Răzvan Oprea, Rolando Matsangos Multimedia projections: Maria Drăghici, Tudor Petre Movement: Carmen Coţofană Three Romanian youngsters, Madalina, Voicu and Bogdan emigrate to Ireland, the land of their dreams. Accidentally, they meet in Dublin and there is no way back. While they succeed in their new home country, they recreate their lost Romanian identity. Because they cannot escape themselves and Romania. Gianina Ca rbunariu is a leading figure of contemporary Romanian theatre. With her unusual plays and productions, she is portraying a stirring image of today s Romania. This is the first time that Ca rbunariu and Bucarest s leading contemporary theatre, Teatrul Mic, visits Budapest. Mady: The first two were Romanian. I pleaded with them to stop it, that I am one of them, that I am Romanian too. The first one said: All the better. Romanian girls are the best fuck. So come on, time is up. The other one was a bit more understanding: I am sorry, I didn t know. I just paid the money and now I am here. And then they complained to Voicu. I completely lost it, I wanted to die. Then Voicu got mad at me and took the knife. This is where he cut me. This shows that I am an obedient girl. Then I realised that this is it, that it is no use complaining. For a long time I was trying to hide the scar, so that these men don t see it, you know and then one of them lifted my shirt Very sexy, he said. I mean the scar. And then I started to show it to everyone. It became my trademark. Gianina Cărbunariu s performance is disturbing. She throws into our face the kind of disturbing reality where nobody is an innocent victim of their fate. These people are all carnivores, fighting for a place for themselves in this world. Putting the failed hopes of Romania on stage may be the only way to force this society, with its misery wrapped in its national flag, to save itself. The country of these poor gymnastic champions without a childhood, of these extremely hardworking students who are forever destined to be unemployed, of these strangers who will have your baby in return of a citizenship, of those who, as the poem says, if these photos could talk/ (...) / yours would whisper from the frame / You are not who you wanted to be. The Romania of here and now, who just matters Maddybaby and get what he wants: a new identity in the eyes of a new generation. Iulia Popovici, Ziua, November 2004 What happens to those people who are unable to live in this merciless and hopeless country that Romania is, so they leave forever to claim a new identity for themselves in a better world? asks the performance. What is more, what happens if Romania follows you, pestering you like a really stubborn nightmare? We believe that the only credible way we can address, and we can present, people that appear on the stage, the people who live in 2004 Romania and who decide that they can not live here any longer, if we accept the facts and categorically refuse to use as a shelter the aesthetic euphemism that completely ignores the sociological and political reality. Gianina Cărbunariu, Further information: Gianina Cărbunariu November :00 Merlin Színház Budapest, V., Gerlóczy u. 4.

14 52 The only place where we are equal is madness. 2 december 16:00 Millenáris Teátrum 1 december 19:00 Millenáris Teátrum Photo: Vladimir Vinogradov Life is much more interesting than books Vasilij Sigarjev Me, the Machine Gunner Jurij Klavdiev Kazancev Center, Moscow Running time: 45 minute, without interval With Hungarian simultaneous translation Performed by: Kirill Pletnov Light: Jevgenij Vinogradov Sound: Vladislav Kaptur Scene: Marija Utrobina Jurji Klavdijev is a young dramatist from Togliatti, a Russian industrial town. He has been included among the authors of the Novaja Drama Festival in Moscow. He is a unique phenomenon in Russia, a real enfant terrible. His dramas are mercilessly straightforward and aggressive, and they give an honest account of the dark side of Russia. In his play, Me, the Machine Gunner, the main character is a streetwise mafia guy who lives in a cruel everyday reality. To introduce another timeline, his grandfather appears to him from World War II, to make a stark comparison between a glorious bygone age and today s empty, meaningless gang culture. Phantompain After Vasilij Sigariev s play Running time: 1 hour, without interval With Hungarian simultaneous translation Coproduction of the Moscow Arts Theatre (Mkhat) / Theatre.doc / Centre de production ABSOLU (Moscow) Directed by Irina Keruchenko Meeting with author Jurij Klavdiev, director Irina Keruchenko and the art director of the Kazancev Center Cast: Kirill Pletnov, Elena Liamina, Valentin Samokhine, Alexander Sokovikov Light: Vladislav Kaptur Sound: Olga Tomenko Scene: Marija Utrobina Director: Irina Keruchenko Vasilij Sigariev is a young Russian dramatist from Yekaterinburg. His play is about two security guards in a tram depot, who find each other during a long, vodka-fuelled night. They meet Olja, who is desperately looking for her husband. To kill the time, they amuse themselves with pretending that they are the lost husband This is a romantic fantasy play about love, madness, tenderness and hope. Vasilij Sigariev is well known in Hungary. His play, Black Milk, directed by Péter Gothár in the Katona József Kamra Theatre, was a great success. At the 2005 Festival, Plasticide, directed by Kirill Serebrennikov, was one of our prominent guest performances. The director, Irina Keruchenko, started to study Phantompain at the Moscow Art Theatre when she was a final year student in Kama Ginkas class. Later she directed the play at a well-known documentarist theatre, Theatre.doc, that gives priority to dramas from the Ural region, because they bring stories from the depth of Russia. Sigariev s characters are always running away from life, dread to confront reality, are emotionally dead, and, almost always, alcoholics. Performed by: Silja Bächli, Christian Brey, Katja Bürkle, Bijan Zamani Set: Chasper Bertschinger Costume: Anette Hachmann, Elisa Limberg, v Video: Alexander Schmidt, Dramaturg: Christian Holtzhauer, Prompter and assistant: Stephanie Manz Director: René Pollesch René Pollesch When can I finally go into a Supermarket and buy Everything I Need only by my good Look With Hungarian simultaneous translation First performance 29th April 2006, Schauspiel Stuttgart /Staatstheater Stuttgart Supporter of the guest performance: Goethe Institut Ungarn I would be really glad if you could say: To hell with poverty. But even if you said that, it would mean that love is still there, that you can still count on it, that in love, we are still all equal. But you know what? To hell with this concept that love makes us equal, that it is a form of integration. We are not equal in love either. Love is more like the last ray of hope that everybody hangs onto, ever since this damned nation went down forever. And there you go! To hell with nation, to hell with love. The only place where we are equal is madness. We are only equal in this place where we don t go. Get this form of integration! To go where we don t go, to be where we can t be! Nobody! (René Pollesch) René Pollesch (born in 1962) is a dramatist, theatre director and Artistic Director of the Volksbühne Prater in Berlin. Prater Trilogy featured at the prominent Berliner Theatertreffen in In the same year, theatre critics of Theater Heute named her Best Dramatist of the Year, and in 2006, she was winner of the Mühlheimer Dramatikerpreis Prize for Best Play. The play was commissioned by Schauspiel Stuttgart, the most progressive prose theatre in Germany. In her 4th Stuttgart production, Pollesch uses her recurrent themes: drugs, love and technology. The only thing she s changed is the perspective, which brought on a new theme: identity. The creation of identity, when you ask, for example: Who am I when I am wearing polyester tracksuit? The title says a lot about Pollesch s radically innovative theatre. It is more about collecting bits and pieces and lining them up, than fake, artistic polishing and fitting things together that don t really fit. This is the theatre of questions, which does not give you answers and obvious messages. Rather it gets the obvious and takes it into pieces. Stuttgarter Zeitung Further information: december 19:30 Új Theatre Budapest, VI., Paulay Ede u. 35.

15 Egressy Zoltán 29 november 18:00 Merlin theatre Budapest, V., Gerlóczy u november 22:00 Sirály Budapest, VI., Király u. 50. Abel Neves Supporting Programme DramaShow 18:00 Book display of Rivalda drama anthology Moderator: Balázs Lévai Authors presented this night: Csaba Kiss, Zsolt Láng, László Garaczi, György Spiró, Tibor Zalán, János Térey and one of the editors, Tamás Tarján UnlessIf Péter Gazdag Rehearsed reading Cast: actors of KoMa 20:00 Reading of plays from Europe (in Hungarian!) We continue the festival s tradition to show contemporary foreign plays for the Hungarian public and theatre professionals, translated into Hungarian. Abel Neves: Nunca estive em Bagdad Translator: Árpád Mohácsi Handl Klaus: Dunkel lockende Welt Translator: Enikô Perczel Director: Vilmos Vajdai University exams, squat pubs, long, heated arguments without consequence, and finally a big, big protest, which means that everybody can go home now, back to where they were. We really want to achieve something but are only scratching a big fat nothing. This is the Budapest of the early 2000 s. You can laugh now. We have to protest. We had to protest, and probably we will have to protest. The question is not why but how. But I think how is less important than how not or rather why not. Péter Gazdag 54 Writer of the School - School of the writer Co-organised by the Contemporary Drama Festival Budapest, Hungarian Theatre Museum and Institut, Round Table of Hungarian Playwrights Who reads contemporary Hungarian drama? Who are contemporary Hungarian dramatists? Are young people interested in drama, as a genre? Do they go to the theatre to see new Hungarian drama? These issues are important to us. We would like to create a bigger audience for contemporary Hungarian drama, and now high schools students in Hungary were given the opportunity to meet dramatists and their work. We have an ambitious plan for the festival. We will try and put dramatists and high school students in the same room! One class one dramatist Authors will designate one of their works for preliminary reading for a group of students. Then they visit Budapest high schools during the festival and meet the class that was designated to them and discuss the chosen work. The initiative was extremely popular with the students. So far, more than 20 schools have signed up. We are glad to announce that the following authors have agreed to participate in the project: Géza Bereményi, János Háy, Zoltán Egressy, Zsolt Pozsgai, Csaba Kiss, Gergely Péterfy, Németh Ákos, Lilla Falussy, István Tasnádi, Sándor Sultz, Péter Horváth, Katalin Thuróczy, Kárpáti Péter, Vera Filó, László Márton, István Vörös és Tibor Zalán. Programme coordinators: Ágnes Szebényi (OSZMI) szebenyi.agnes@ella.hu Nikolett Tóth (Contemporary Drama Festival Budapest) t.niki85@gmail.com Supporting Programme 55 november 23.- December 3. Budapest

16 57 Photo: Zsuzsa Koncz 27, 29 nov. 19:00 Radnóti Színház Budapest, VI., Nagymezô u nov., 1 Dec. 20:00 Bakelit M.A.C. Budapest, IX., Soroksári út 164. Off programme Table Music János Térey Cast: Sándor Csányi, Ervin Nagy, Kata Wéber, Viktória Szávai, Patrícia Kovács, Ádám Földi, Zoltán Schneider, Virág Marjai, Bálint Adorjáni Set: Levente Bagossy Costume: Kriszta Remete Dramaturg: Krisztina Kovács Assistant: Margit Balák Director: László Bagossy First performance: 20 October 2007 Co-production with The Budapest Autumn Festival. Supporters of the performance: National Cultural Fund, József Katona Production Grant (NKÖM) Oktatási és Kulturális Minisztérium After the success of Nibelung Residency and Casemates, János Térey wrote a new drama, but this time a peaceful, light, satirical play, a bittersweet portrayal of the early-21 st century Budapest. Plasma László Garaczi KoMa Cast: Bálint Jaskó, Erzsébet Jelinek, András Ötvös, Katalin Patocskai, Vince Zrínyi Gál Dramaturg: Ildikó Lôkös Set design: László Karácsony Music: Balázs Futó Producer: Balázs Erôs First performance: 17 November 2007 Kortárs Magyar Trupp (KoMA) was formed by a group of young actors fresh out of drama school, putting contemporary Hungarian plays on stage. Plasma is their theatrical debut. Plasma World is where characters, situations and stories go through a constant metamorphosis. In this perpetual movement, scenes, characters and stories are formed. The inside becomes outside, the invisible becomes visible (blood-plasma TV). Locations and characters of a city, Budapest, are recognisable but it is all surrounded, penetrated, inundated, engulfed, altered and absorbed by this living and boiling pre-material. We are looking for a form, character, truth or norm in this concrete, but at the same time relative space. László Garaczi 56 Cast: Eszter Csákányi, József Gyabronka, Borbála Péterfy, Lilla Sárosdi, Zsolt Nagy, Annamária Láng, Roland Rába, László Katona, Tamás Vati Music: Zsófia Tallér Set: Mária Ambrus Costume: Mari Benedek Cast: András Ötvös, Vera Sipos, Vince Zrínyi Gál, Ferenc Tóth Simon I am a little boy with glasses Cast: Gergely Bánki, Johanna Bodor, Éva Botos, Ferenc Elek, Annamária Fodor, Anna Gáspár, Vera Sipos, Zsófi Szamosi, György Vass Scenic design: Balázs Cziegler and Réka Pelsôczy Costume: Fruzsina Nagy Music consultant: Csaba Erôs Music editor: Vilmos Vajdai Rap lyrics: Zsolt Máthé Choreographer: Johanna Bodor Light design: Krisztián Balázs Sound: Attila Pokorny Assistant: Anna Gáspár Dramatic advisor: Gábor Galambos Director: Réka Pelsôczy The performance is a co-production of Kék Mûvészügynökség and Mûvészetek Völgye. Nine people are sitting in front of us. Men and women between 30 and 40. Hungarians or at least they seem to be. They wear their best clothes. Their feet are dug in sand. They turn their face towards the sky. They are sunbathing. An imaginary group therapy begins where we get to know who they are: their name, qualification, martial status, where have they attended the elementary school and kindergarten, what did they wear at carnivals in their childhood. Their memories recall the nursery rhymes, songs and plays of the 80 s and also their dreams and problems in different ways through music, monologues, dances or choruses. Krétakör Theatre Henrik Ibsen Peer Gynt With English subtitles Dramaturg: Júlia Ungár Assistant: Péter Tóth Directed by Sándor Zsótér First performance: 14 October 2005 Merlin Színház Kornél Hamvai Hell Scenery: Sándor Daróczi Workmate of the director: Szandra Gerô Director: Pál Göttinger Off programme Listen to me, Eric. People want a companion because they are afraid in the dark. They are afraid to be on their own. (abstract) 2 December 22:00 Gödör Klub Budapest, V., Erzsébet tér 26, 28 nov. 19:00 Thália Régi Stúdió Budapest, VI., Nagymezô u dec. 15:00 Merlin Theatre Budapest, V., Gerlóczy u. 4.

17 Fesztiválszervezôk / Festivalteam Dr. Mayerné Szilágyi Mária Fesztiválvezetô Festival Director Tóth Nikolett programszervezô, román vendégjáték Programme Coordinator, Romanian Guest Perfomance 59 Báthory Zsuzsanna logisztikai menedzser Logistics Management Molnár Angelika Orosz vendégjáték Russian Guest Perfomance Berecz Zsuzsa Nemzetközi szeminárium, német vendégjáték International Workshop, German Guest Perfomance Fodor Krisztina sajtó- és közönségkapcsolatok Press and Public Relations Sôregi Melinda magyar program, PR, PR Gáspár Magdolna Programszervezô, izraeli program Programme coordinator, Israeli Guest Perfomance Móricz Fruzsina Pályázatok Tendering Operation Barsi Gizella Visitors Programme Szebényi Ágnes Magyar kísérô program Hungarian Supporting Programme Szilágyi Csilla Szponzoráció Sponsoration Management Mayer Dániel rendszergazda, programszervezô System Administrator, Programme Coordinator Lakos Anna izraeli vendégjáték Israeli Guest Perfomance Kocsi Bálint angol nyelvû levelezés, fordítás, kanadai vendégjáték English Correspondance, Translation, Canadian Guest Perfomance 58

18 Támogatók / Supporters Partnerek / Partners Vidám Színpad, Nemzetközi Színházi Intézet (ITI) Magyar Központja, Drámaírói Kerekasztal, Katona József Színház (Budapest), Városi Színház, Stúdió K Színház, Magyar Színikritikusok Céhe Médiapartnerek / Media partners 60 MAZSIKE, Szombat A fesztivál szállodája / the Hotel of the Festival: Ramada Budapest Hotel (Budapest, IX., Tompa u ) A fesztivál fô vendéglátója / Main host: Spinoza Ház (Budapest, VII., Dob u. 15.) A fesztivál arculata / Image of the Festival: solid.hu Kortárs Drámafesztivál Budapest, 1094 Budapest, Bokréta u. 10. I./1., Tel.: , Skype: cdf_budapest

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