The German State Theatre Timișoara (GSTT) has begun rehearsals for “Play Strindberg” by Friedrich Dürrenmatt, directed by Alexandru Mihăescu. The premiere is scheduled for 30 January 2027.
Based on Friedrich Dürrenmatt’s play, inspired by August Strindberg’s The Dance of Death (Dödsdansen), the new production offers a contemporary reinterpretation of relationships between women and men, marriage, and the power dynamics that develop within it.
The director’s concept places the action in an exclusively female island community, imagined as an isolated society in search of its own points of reference. The women discover and reinterpret the story of Play Strindberg, attempting to understand what love and hatred, seduction and betrayal, togetherness and loneliness once meant. In this way, Dürrenmatt’s text becomes the starting point for a reflection that transforms the tragedy of a bourgeois marriage into a comedy about the tragedies of bourgeois married life.
The visual world of the production is created at the intersection of dramatic theatre, performance art, pop culture and science fiction, drawing inspiration from works in photography, video art and performance. The production alternates scenes from Dürrenmatt’s play with visual and musical sequences, in which choreography, video projections and performative interventions complement and expand the story. The soundscape helps shape the two distinct theatrical worlds: the island community and the dramatic universe of Dürrenmatt’s characters.
The cast brings together Enikő Blénessy, Ioana Iacob, Aida Olaru, Daniela Török, Olga Török and Oana Vidoni, who take turns playing the roles of Edgar, Alice and Kurt. The role of Doyenne is performed by Tatiana Sessler-Toami.
The artistic and production team consists of Alexandru Mihăescu (director), Ioana Popescu (set design), Mira Țâra (dramaturgy), Ovidiu Zimcea (music and video), Vlad Dragomirescu (lighting design), Viktoria Medvedewa (choreography and movement), Bojița Ilici (make-up), Alma Diaconu (assistant director) and Costinel Stănescu (technical director).
With this new production, the German State Theatre Timișoara continues to explore contemporary theatrical forms and bring to audiences classical texts reinterpreted through current artistic perspectives.
Further details will be announced soon.
