Fortedanse: The Physicists
Sanyi and Aranka Theatre and Opera, 25th and 28th November 7.00 PM
photo: Dusa Gábor
Translated by János Térey and Artemisz Harmath
(the translation was based on the following edition: Diogenes Verlag, AG Zürich, 1998.)
Players:
Máté Andrássy, Borbála Blaskó, Nóra Földeáki, István Gantner, Virgil Horváth,
Dramaturge: László Upor
Costumes: Mari Benedek
Set design: Milorad Krstic
Director: Csaba Horváth
This play by Friedrich Dürrenmatt written in 1962 is about the failure of modern scientific views. The story of the play revolves around some scientists who have fled into a mental hospital from their responsibilities turning the lunatic asylum into a symbol of our mad world in which the mentally deranged are hard at work to blow the world up, whereas the „sane” are trying to safeguard their thoughts in the same institution so that they don’t harm their fellow-men.
The play resembles a comedy in many of its aspects but its world and its message are beyond cheerfulness. It brings up the issue of the scientist’s subjective responsibility, though it goes even further, and thus it passes judgement on our modern world itself. Möbius, the main character, hits upon the secret of „The Principle of Universal Discovery” but, seeing how science is put into the service of politics and the economy with more and more inhuman purposes, he voluntarily enters the mental asylum so that in this way he may save mankind from his own discovery. But, accidentally, he chooses the worst asylum of all and his idea backfires: it is exactly him who, by chance, gives out his discovery. „We can be free only in the asylum. Out in the free world our thoughts are explosives.” Freedom comes from our acknowledgement of the power of chance, that is, true freedom comes from our understanding of the fact that we are never free.
János Térey is a freelance writer. His first poems were published in 1990 in the literary journal, Élet és Irodalom. He has published eight volumes of poetry and a book of short stories; his most important work is a novel written in verse called Paulus as well as his dramatetralogy, The Nibelung Apartments. The third part of the dramacycle, Hagen or the Hate-talk was performed by the Krétakör Theatre in the October of 2004 at the Sziklakórház in the Buda Castle, in the stage direction of Kornél Mundruczó. For the cinema he co-wrote a libretto in verse with Bálint Harcos for the operafilm Johanna whose music was composed by Zsófia Tallér and which was directed by Kornél Mundruczó.
Awards: Soros Scholarship (1994, 2000), Déry Tibor Prize (1995), Móricz Zsigmond Scholarship(1995), Magyar Rádió Petőfi Award (1996), NKA Scholarship (1996, 2004), Alföld Award (2000), Soros and MAK Scolarship (2000), József Attila Award (2001), Független Művészeti Alapítvány Scholarship for Playwrights (2002), Füst Milán Award (2002), Palatinus Award (2002), Palladium Award (2002), Tiszatáj Award (2002), Színházi Dramaturgok Céhe Award (2003), Örkény István Scholarship (2003), Award for the best Hungarian play of the year (2003), First Prize at the NKÖM „Édes anyanyelvünk” in the category of poetry (2004), Szép Ernő Prize (2004), Book of the Year in the category of drama (2005), Award of the Guild of Theatre Critics (2005, 2006), Magyar Köztársasági Érdemrend Lovagkeresztje (2006), Akademie Schloss Solitude Scholarship (Stuttgart, 2006), Látó Award, Marosvásárhely (2007), AEGON Arts Award (2008), Szépírók Társasága Award (2004), Színházi Dramaturgok Céhe Award (2008), Szép Ernő Prize (2008).
Supported by: Balassi Institute
www.fortedanse.hu,
Ticket price: 2000 Ft
Tickets are available at the ticket office of the Sanyi and Aranka Theatre and Opera
E-mail: lang.sasz@gmail.com