The start of 7th edition of the European Theatre Festival Eurothalia organized by the German State Theatre Timisoara (GSTT) is upon us. In the program of the first two days we have the following performances:
“Ibsen: Ghosts”, a Markus&Markus production (Germany)
Friday the 6th of October, at 18 o’clock and Saturday, the 7th of October, at 18 o’clock
in the Studio Hall of the “Csiky Gergely” Theatre Timisoara,
“Western Society”, a production of the Gob Squad company (Germany)
Friday, 6th of October, at 20 o’clock
in the Hall of the German Theatre
and
“The Incredible and Sad Tale of Innocent Eréndira and Her Heartless Grandmother” by G. G. Márquez, stage version and directing by Yuri Kordonsky
Saturday, 7th of October, at 20 o’clock
in the Hall of the German Theatre.
The Markus&Markus collective from Hildesheim practices a distinct form of investigative political theatre. In the performances of this company, the border between theatre and reality is completely dissolved, provoking intense debates.
„Ibsen:Ghosts” uses the main theme in Ibsen’s play, where the main character Osvald asks his mother to help him die. She has doubts and alongside her, many societies the world over are asking themselves whether the right to an assisted death exists or not. The Markus&Markus collective met their own Osvald, under the guise of 81 year old Margot, on the 1st of April 2014. They followed her with a camera in the last days of her life as she was putting her affairs in order, final appointments with doctors, farewell parties, and in the end, to Switzerland. There are some organizations there that for some years now offer assisted death, within very strict limits of the law of course. On the 22nd of May 2014 the collective was attending Margot’s funeral. „Ibsen:Ghosts” is a show about death, but at the same time, an elixir of life , because: „As long as there are people talking about me, and my story is told, I am not dead.”
Gob Squad is a collective of British and German artists, founded in 1994, that explores the interplay between art, media and real life, presenting their productions in theatres as well as unconventional spaces like galleries, stores, parking lots, hotels or in the street. Their shows have been presented on almost all continents. The collective was distinguished over time with awards such as the Goethe Institute Award within the Impulse Festival or the Drama Desk Award for unique theatrical experiences.
“Western Society” is a portrait of the civilisation of the XXIst century, much like a frame through which we can take a gander at the living room of a family we don’t know , but in which we can find ourselves. Fascinated with technology, the Gob Squad company enters through this performance into the centre of a west side family, bringing to stage an un-spectacular and un-viewed scene of a film about an anonymous living room, a family reunion, somewhere at the edge of the Western World. During a party, in a room filled with people, family, friends and strangers are held together by the karaoke machine: lonely together and together alone. What are we doing here? What is this? Is this happiness? Performers continue to ask themselves the same questions, wondering how they got to where they are now.
The performance “The Incredible and Sad Tale of Innocent Eréndira and Her Heartless Grandmother” is the most recent GSTT production. Directed by Yuri Kordonsky, stage design by Helmut Stürmer, while costumes are by Ioana Popescu. Soundtrack is by Tibor Cári, and playwright is Rudolf Herbert. The show tells the story of Eréndira, who was barelly 14 years old when her grandmother, accusing her of burning the house down, forces her into prostitution. „The Incredible and Sad Tale of Innocent Eréndira and Her Heartless Grandmother” is considered one of the most emotional stories by Gabriel García Márquez. Some of his motives from „ A century of solitude” are woven here with themes such as guilt and redemption, love and death. A laureate of the Nobel Prize for Literature, an exceptional director that also signs the staging of the text, as well as a consecrated ensemble approach this magical world where reality and imagination intertwine.
Andreea Andrei - Artistic Consultant Gabriela Schinderman- Secretary Photo: Image from „Western Society”, a Gob Squad production, „Ibsen: Ghost”, a Markus&Markus production, „... Erendira...”, a GSTT production. The photograph can be used in mass-media and promotional goals, including in electronic media.
