On March 21, 2025, an unusual theatrical production will have its world premiere: the stage adaptation of Andrei Tarkovsky's iconic film “The Mirror“. The director of the production is Bülent Özdil, an actor of the German State Theater Timișoara. This ambitious project attempts to bring Tarkovsky's narrative depth and visual power to the stage. The performance will be hosted on the German State Theater stage. The second performance will take place on March 22, 2025.
“The Mirror” tells the story of a dying man (Alexei) who remembers his childhood and youth, reflecting on his relationships with his parents and his first love.
The narrative does not follow a dramatic plot in the true sense, but is an associative stream of thoughts. Tarkovsky combines elements of individual memory and collective history. The autobiographically influenced work frees itself from the conventions of narrative cinema and replaces a linear plot with a free change of different time levels. The first of two storylines is about the life of Alexei, his wife Natalia and the problems in their marriage and the difficult relationship with his mother (Maria).
The second narrative strand reports on Alexei's childhood and, above all, on his mother Maria. The memories from the 1930s show the mother's life with all her problems and experiences. The story is not told in a contemporary chronology, but jumps back and forth in the individual scenes.
“The Mirror” mixes decisive moments in world history with autobiographical memories and dreams. At the same time, “The Mirror” is a projection surface for current events: Russian identity in relation to Europe, censorship, freedom of speech and freedom of the press and hints of conflicts between Russians and Ukrainians are part of this story.
The production deals with themes such as identity, memory and human complexity and at the same time offers a current reference to social issues such as freedom, censorship and Russia's war of aggression on Ukraine. In addition, the project integrates artificial intelligence as an artistic means to open up new visual and acoustic dimensions.
The project is being realized by a team of experienced artists, including producer, actor and director Bülent Özdil, artist and author Sarah Maria Kretschmer, as well as the well-known actress Ida Jarcsek-Gaza. The cast also includes Harald Weisz, Oana Vidoni, Yannick Becker, Daniela Tőrők, Isa Berger, Rareș Hontzu, Daniel Ghidel, Robert Bogdanov-Schein and Marc Illich.
With this production, Bülent Özdil invites the audience to experience Tarkowski's work in a completely new way.
Bülent Özdil was born in 1981 in Rothenburg ob der Tauber and grew up in Bad Windsheim, Germany. He trained as an actor at the Wiesbaden School of Acting (WSfS) in Wiesbaden, graduating in 2006, and during his training he starred in his first production - Urfaust - as Valentin.
Between 2006 and 2010 he worked as an actor in Bern, among other places, and participated in several television productions. This was followed by engagements at the Westfälisches Landestheater in Castrop-Rauxel and the Schauspielhaus Salzburg. During this period he played the role of Faust in Goethe's drama of the same name. Before he joined the ensemble of the German State Theater Timișoara at the beginning of the 2022/23 season, his play “Advocatus Diaboli“ celebrated its world premiere in Salzburg. He is an actor at The German State Theatre since 2022.
Andrei Tarkovsky was born in Russia and became famous overnight with his movie “Ivan's Childhood“. His films, including “Andrei Rubliov“, “Solaris“ and “The Traveler“, are notable for their quiet imagery and distinctive atmospheres. Although highly appreciated abroad, he received no official recognition in his homeland. Health problems and artistic differences drove him into exile, where he made films such as “Nostalgia“ and “Sacrifice“. His works, characterized by a search for poetic connection and a play with ancient ruins and nature, have influenced filmmakers around the world. Tarkovsky died in 1986 in Paris, but left behind an impressive legacy in the world of film, which continues to be celebrated with retrospectives and honors.
“Anyone who wants to can look at my films like a mirror in which they can see themselves. If the conception of a story is given life-like forms and the focus is on the affective function, then the audience is able to relate to this conception in the light of individual experiences." - Andrei Tarkovsky
Tickets for ”The Mirror”, here: https://www.entertix.ro/evenimente?s=teatrul+german
More info, here: https://teatrulgerman.ro/ro/reprezenta%C8%9Bii/oglinda/
