Heiner Müller's famous text from 1977 is often used in the theater as a basis for mixing or supplementing with other texts and themes. In the specific case of the performance of the National Theater from Bitola, that mix is made with, to put it briefly, actors' stories about life in contemporary Macedonia. Of course, all of this can be applied to most other countries from this transitional part of the world.
Topics include obsession with sports success, the construction mafia, directors of fictional government agencies, racism towards Albanians, conservatism...
"Hamlet machine" is a text that always offers possibilities for different plays, and its strength and brutality make it particularly suitable for questioning politics and violence, (repressive) cultural patterns, etc. In Andraš Urban's play, Miller's text is combined and alternated with a text made in collaboration with the playwright Biljana Krajčevska and the actors, just as the actors from the scenes following Miller's words, jump into scenes made as supposedly private.
Normally, it is manipulation, which is not even hidden; that is, even when the "private" plan takes place, a high degree of performativity is maintained in the acting. It is also an excellent key for playing the newly created text of the play, composed of curse words, mutual name-calling, quarrels both personal and political, which functions as a hilarious political satire.
All this has a lot of bright moments, but among them stands out, let's call it that, the scene of the women on the beach, in which, in an exultant manner of talking about the most beautiful, luxurious and phenomenal experiences, a series of stories about humiliating situations at the borders and abroad actually alternate. queues for visas, passport controls.
However, the culmination takes place in a scene where we watch to the point of exhaustion the big fights of the acting ensemble: who came to the theater how and through what relationship, who slept with whom and what their sexual preferences are, who sold themselves for what...
No reality show on television would be ashamed of such quarrels and mutual insults in the theater world, so this scene also becomes a kind of self-ironic comment that unmasks the alleged superiority of high-culture institutions.
The acting ensemble is quite compact, dedicated and precise. Throughout the play, a series of powerful scenes are constantly changing, which are packaged precisely and highly aestheticized in the best Urban manner.
The scenography by Valentin Svetozarev follows this aestheticization, and is rather reduced and functional (a tin wall that can be divided and removed as needed), while Silard Mezei's music at times counterpoints and at times colors the atmosphere.
When all that is put together, Andraš Urban managed to get "both the goat and the money", that is, a murderous political performance par excellence, which is artistically and aesthetically fully rounded. This one-and-a-half-hour horror film about Balkan countries is FIAT's brightest moment so far.
Tonight "Stolice" and "Elektra" of the Macedonian National Theater from Skopje
On the penultimate day of the Festival of International Alternative Theater FIAT 2015, the competition selection will include two plays, both created in the Macedonian National Theatre: "Stolice" and "Elektra".
The play "Chairs", based on the work of Ežen Ionesko, directed by Damjan Čitkušev, will be performed at 18 pm in the hall of DODESTA. Set design and projection are by Sergej Svetozarev, costumes by Melanie Dimitrovska. Played by Driton Vejseli and Blagica Dimitrovska.
The official competitive selection of the festival closes with the play "Elektra", produced by the Macedonian National Theater and directed by Andrij Zoldak. The play was based on the motifs of the Greek myth of Electra, the dramatic text, direction and lighting design are by Andrij Žoldak, scenography by Andrij Žoldak and Lukas Noll, costume design by Lukas Noll and Dan Žoldak, the composer is Sergej Patramanskij, and the assistant director is Nikola Kimovski. Starring: Darja Rizova, Aleksandar Gjorgioski, Zvezda Angelovska, Nikola Aceski, Slavisha Kajevski, Borche Nachev, Zvezda Angelovski, Aleksandar Mihajlovski, Anastasia Tashkovska, Mihaela Nikoloska and Arna Shijak.
As part of the Montenegro Art Guerrilla segment, at 22 p.m. in Kuslev's house, the film "Folkolin 500mg" by the NGO Oni guys will be shown. Directed by Nemanja Dragović and Boško Purić, based on the script by Stefan Vuković and Mladen Ivanović. As part of the music program, DJ Gilerz will perform in the courtyard of Kuslev's house at 23 p.m.
Gallery
Bonus video:
