Zsuszanna Makk: The bad one with a blanket
Shakespeare is always actual, he is always on programme, and this year because of the 400. anniversary of his death, the Opera House also dedicates the whole season to him. In the Opera House on the premiere day of Richard III by Maladype, starts its Shakespeare marathon (17 types of performances based on 10 plays, during 31 and a half week long period of time – it is almost unimaginably great amount, it is impossible to watch all of them), because of the busy events of this, I could not finish this critic before. For the five performances of Maladype, this year, the tickets have been blindly sold, so the main aim of this critic is to prepare us for the performances of the next year, so that is why the fact to be late with one week is less important. (I excuse myself with it, I have been writing it for a week, but I have been able to post it.)
The most of the 37 plays of the writer reflected on the actual political situation of his era, the power and its harmful effects on human identity are common topics, they are connected to different kings’ reigns in the ten plays of kings, in most of the tragedies, but also in plays and comedies. Because, Shakespeare lived from the market, so we can think, that also the viewers liked the references behind the censors’ backs, and they got it and bought the tickets.
Just to compare, we can watch the offer of the theatres in Budapest today, and see how many of them deal similarly with the question of political power (observing: the situation of politicians, corruption), then we can find many of them. I would like to mention some of them without the need of complete overview, for example Yes, Mr. President! (Átrium), Through the swamp (Jurányi), The trousers (Karinthy), The champion, Sugar Kremlin (Katona), Hamlet (Örkény), Turandot (Radnóti), I. Elizabeth (Szkéné), Our secrets (Béla Pintér), The Inspector (Víg), but the bigger amount of the programme is given by those plays, which are entertaining, and which avoid the examination of those social phenomenon, which cannot be connected to political system strongly. Maybe this ratio was not different in Shakespeare time too, it cannot be decided for sure, if people from the Elizabethan era or the ordinary Hungarian viewers of today would prefer more watching on stage the examination of the political phenomenon. But it is for sure, that the performances with this topic are necessary even today, as the ones, which I have mentioned, are usually performed with full house.
About the play
Richard III is probably the most well-known and the most performed play of king from the ten, the figure of the humped king comes from it into the common knowledge, to whom many clichés are connected. The effect of the play is so strong that in York they formed a committee many decades ago, which tries to restore the king’s reputation, which was mocked by Shakespeare, and they have even founded a whole museum with this aim. All of it for nothing, the killing of the character has happened irreversibly.
The importance of the story is well-known: Richard has decided to become a villain, he decides how he will kill some, and then he chooses the “tactics of cuts”, and he puts away his enemies from his way. He is chosen to be the king, he does not keep his promises to his supporters, then he heroically falls, and the next applicant of the throne can come.
Once – at the age of 15 – during a holiday by the lake Balaton I have read all the plays of kings one by one, and it was clear by then that all plays were written according to the same form (there are different characters in the positions, but many times even the names are the same) and it indicates, that the writer had that impression that history repeats itself. The same thing happens always, the applicant of the throne, who has nice expectations, becomes sinful inevitably and he falls. Richard III is different from the others, the owner of the throne does all evil things consciously, and he always knows that all of these are immoral. (The programme, which is made for the performance also emphasises that the role of the surrounding is important, which can make possible for him to fulfil his plans. Everybody wants to benefit from it, it is another question that finally they cannot, because Richard does not keep his promises, after he has won the throne.)
From now on aimfully just about Sándor Zsótér’s staging...
Sándor Zsótér does not do two things, which are usually presented in performances of Shakespeare: everybody is in modern dresses, they are wearing suits, ties and sunglasses, and he does not perform a blood bath in the middle room of Maladype, in an arm distance from the almost fifty viewers, who are sitting in the four corners of the room. Instead of it, we can feel again, that the members of his group are working perfectly together: Mária Ambrus places a scaffold in the middle (the stage is widened), there is a baking tin under it, about which we can think, that it is a desk of a butcher and it will be bloody, but it will not. We can learn it from a new interview with the director: it is a table of a bakery. Mari Benedek has an even more highlighted role as a costume designer now than usual. For me it seems to be important – my choice of title is connected to it – which all the characters are covered with blankets, which they sometimes hold around their waists, and then sometimes they throw it on their shoulders. Of course, the nature of the blanket is also important – on Richard III there is a plush that is similar to red velvet, while on queen Elizabeth there is one with tiger prints, on the children there are pure white ones. The blankets can have not got only far away associations (many characters have the aim to hide their acts), but for me, they clearly emphasize the GAME-nature of the performance, as children, maybe performers of student troupes can use similar tools, when they play to be kings. (The plastic swords can strengthen this gesture.) It can also emphasize that Richard handles strongly his trials as role-play too, and maybe he is the most surprised that he always becomes successful.
I have known someone – who can believe, he was a student of Hungarian and English literature –whose favourite one was this play, he wrote his degree about it, and he had been mentioning it a lot until then. He always stressed that the main moment of the play is the Anna-scene, Richard’s main success is that he can get someone on his side, whose husband he killed not a long time ago. After it, everything goes on almost on its own and we can feel it.
I, because I have read the play and the other plays of king more, think that the weakest point of performances of Richard III is the fact, that the end of the process is well foreseeable, predictable and tension is wavering inevitably, more punctually: I have never seen that kind of performance of Richard III, in case of which I could not feel, that I got bored sometimes.
Now Zoltán Balázs can hold on properly, and he explains his decision not with some kind of visual distortion, but with Richard’s low self-esteem. He sometimes moves his mouth into a childish smile, as he would fill murders, betrayals, courtship to be games.
The others mostly – and it was usual in Shakespeare’s troupe too – perform more roles, they sensibly make difference between them, but we tend to handle them together, they are those, who are pushed and used by Richard. Zoltán Friedenthal is a different colour as Edward IV, a black mask marks his illness on his face, Márton Pallag is memorable the most as the honest Prince of Clarence, but he can leave a sign as one of the two young princes, while he is standing a little bit blankly in his white blanket. The other boy, Zsigmond Bödök is also wearing many hats, similarly to József Kádas, Balázs Fila, Sándor Márkus. This last one, together with Zoltán Friedenthal has a great scene as assassins, which can rise up from the whole performance – even after a week. Sometimes, during the performance we can listen to an English song, I have thought for a while, that they come from the loudspeaker behind my back. But they do not, once I have turned back and recognised Pál Péter Szűcs, who has a perfect pronunciation and these musical interludes can brighten up the performance, they have entertaining effect on us.
After in Shakespeare’s plays of king there are only a few female characters – in the background of the political games, and they are presented as victims, they only sometimes move the lines, but when they do it, then we remember them. In the role of the widow, Lady Anna, Ágota Szilágyi does not appear many times, but we can remember her well anyway, tension is vibrating from the beginning until the end of both of her scenes. She hates the murder of her husband, but she marries him, she cannot resist the seduction. She can perform the process, which is going on inside her, authentically. She is cursing seriously, then she gets confused and realises later that Richard has given her a ring, that Prince Gloster’s next wife, about whom she has told her curse, will be herself.
Kata Huszárik has not been seen for a long time, she has spent a lot of time in Szolnok, before she got into the performances of Maladype. In the role of queen Elizabeth we can feel that she is the ruler instead of the sickly Edward IV, and it is not easy to cheat her, her blanket with tiger print can also express a strong opponent. Anyway, Richard can do it. His mother-in-law, Erika Tankó, who can experience the time, when he was the owner of power, and his fall too. It is a smaller role too, but it is an important one, that even the oldest generation must be shown.
Zoltán Balázs either can cheat or have killed anyone, or he can win them to his side for a while. He has enough energy to the two and a quarter of an hour-long performance, his virtuosity can be felt, he also enjoys the role, as Richard III enjoyed, according to Shakespeare, the performance, which he controlled, which did not have viewers just victims.
The programme emphasize, that however, he can be easily connected to the dictators of the present of past “but there is an important difference: he knows the moral world order. He chooses consciously the bad way. He does not think and does not lie that it is a good one.” Maybe that is the reason, why he cannot stay for long on the way he has chosen.
The watching of the performance gives the possibility to anyone to think these questions over, but who has not done it so far, those can do it next year, however it will be performed on 28th and 29th May, on the base of Maladype, but in reality for only fifty viewers have enough space. So you can get in, if you have not bought your tickets in advance, only if someone has not arrived.
Zsuzsanna Makk, Mezei néző, 2016
(translated by: Veronika Fülöp)
The most of the 37 plays of the writer reflected on the actual political situation of his era, the power and its harmful effects on human identity are common topics, they are connected to different kings’ reigns in the ten plays of kings, in most of the tragedies, but also in plays and comedies. Because, Shakespeare lived from the market, so we can think, that also the viewers liked the references behind the censors’ backs, and they got it and bought the tickets.
Just to compare, we can watch the offer of the theatres in Budapest today, and see how many of them deal similarly with the question of political power (observing: the situation of politicians, corruption), then we can find many of them. I would like to mention some of them without the need of complete overview, for example Yes, Mr. President! (Átrium), Through the swamp (Jurányi), The trousers (Karinthy), The champion, Sugar Kremlin (Katona), Hamlet (Örkény), Turandot (Radnóti), I. Elizabeth (Szkéné), Our secrets (Béla Pintér), The Inspector (Víg), but the bigger amount of the programme is given by those plays, which are entertaining, and which avoid the examination of those social phenomenon, which cannot be connected to political system strongly. Maybe this ratio was not different in Shakespeare time too, it cannot be decided for sure, if people from the Elizabethan era or the ordinary Hungarian viewers of today would prefer more watching on stage the examination of the political phenomenon. But it is for sure, that the performances with this topic are necessary even today, as the ones, which I have mentioned, are usually performed with full house.
About the play
Richard III is probably the most well-known and the most performed play of king from the ten, the figure of the humped king comes from it into the common knowledge, to whom many clichés are connected. The effect of the play is so strong that in York they formed a committee many decades ago, which tries to restore the king’s reputation, which was mocked by Shakespeare, and they have even founded a whole museum with this aim. All of it for nothing, the killing of the character has happened irreversibly.
The importance of the story is well-known: Richard has decided to become a villain, he decides how he will kill some, and then he chooses the “tactics of cuts”, and he puts away his enemies from his way. He is chosen to be the king, he does not keep his promises to his supporters, then he heroically falls, and the next applicant of the throne can come.
Once – at the age of 15 – during a holiday by the lake Balaton I have read all the plays of kings one by one, and it was clear by then that all plays were written according to the same form (there are different characters in the positions, but many times even the names are the same) and it indicates, that the writer had that impression that history repeats itself. The same thing happens always, the applicant of the throne, who has nice expectations, becomes sinful inevitably and he falls. Richard III is different from the others, the owner of the throne does all evil things consciously, and he always knows that all of these are immoral. (The programme, which is made for the performance also emphasises that the role of the surrounding is important, which can make possible for him to fulfil his plans. Everybody wants to benefit from it, it is another question that finally they cannot, because Richard does not keep his promises, after he has won the throne.)
From now on aimfully just about Sándor Zsótér’s staging...
Sándor Zsótér does not do two things, which are usually presented in performances of Shakespeare: everybody is in modern dresses, they are wearing suits, ties and sunglasses, and he does not perform a blood bath in the middle room of Maladype, in an arm distance from the almost fifty viewers, who are sitting in the four corners of the room. Instead of it, we can feel again, that the members of his group are working perfectly together: Mária Ambrus places a scaffold in the middle (the stage is widened), there is a baking tin under it, about which we can think, that it is a desk of a butcher and it will be bloody, but it will not. We can learn it from a new interview with the director: it is a table of a bakery. Mari Benedek has an even more highlighted role as a costume designer now than usual. For me it seems to be important – my choice of title is connected to it – which all the characters are covered with blankets, which they sometimes hold around their waists, and then sometimes they throw it on their shoulders. Of course, the nature of the blanket is also important – on Richard III there is a plush that is similar to red velvet, while on queen Elizabeth there is one with tiger prints, on the children there are pure white ones. The blankets can have not got only far away associations (many characters have the aim to hide their acts), but for me, they clearly emphasize the GAME-nature of the performance, as children, maybe performers of student troupes can use similar tools, when they play to be kings. (The plastic swords can strengthen this gesture.) It can also emphasize that Richard handles strongly his trials as role-play too, and maybe he is the most surprised that he always becomes successful.
I have known someone – who can believe, he was a student of Hungarian and English literature –whose favourite one was this play, he wrote his degree about it, and he had been mentioning it a lot until then. He always stressed that the main moment of the play is the Anna-scene, Richard’s main success is that he can get someone on his side, whose husband he killed not a long time ago. After it, everything goes on almost on its own and we can feel it.
I, because I have read the play and the other plays of king more, think that the weakest point of performances of Richard III is the fact, that the end of the process is well foreseeable, predictable and tension is wavering inevitably, more punctually: I have never seen that kind of performance of Richard III, in case of which I could not feel, that I got bored sometimes.
Now Zoltán Balázs can hold on properly, and he explains his decision not with some kind of visual distortion, but with Richard’s low self-esteem. He sometimes moves his mouth into a childish smile, as he would fill murders, betrayals, courtship to be games.
The others mostly – and it was usual in Shakespeare’s troupe too – perform more roles, they sensibly make difference between them, but we tend to handle them together, they are those, who are pushed and used by Richard. Zoltán Friedenthal is a different colour as Edward IV, a black mask marks his illness on his face, Márton Pallag is memorable the most as the honest Prince of Clarence, but he can leave a sign as one of the two young princes, while he is standing a little bit blankly in his white blanket. The other boy, Zsigmond Bödök is also wearing many hats, similarly to József Kádas, Balázs Fila, Sándor Márkus. This last one, together with Zoltán Friedenthal has a great scene as assassins, which can rise up from the whole performance – even after a week. Sometimes, during the performance we can listen to an English song, I have thought for a while, that they come from the loudspeaker behind my back. But they do not, once I have turned back and recognised Pál Péter Szűcs, who has a perfect pronunciation and these musical interludes can brighten up the performance, they have entertaining effect on us.
After in Shakespeare’s plays of king there are only a few female characters – in the background of the political games, and they are presented as victims, they only sometimes move the lines, but when they do it, then we remember them. In the role of the widow, Lady Anna, Ágota Szilágyi does not appear many times, but we can remember her well anyway, tension is vibrating from the beginning until the end of both of her scenes. She hates the murder of her husband, but she marries him, she cannot resist the seduction. She can perform the process, which is going on inside her, authentically. She is cursing seriously, then she gets confused and realises later that Richard has given her a ring, that Prince Gloster’s next wife, about whom she has told her curse, will be herself.
Kata Huszárik has not been seen for a long time, she has spent a lot of time in Szolnok, before she got into the performances of Maladype. In the role of queen Elizabeth we can feel that she is the ruler instead of the sickly Edward IV, and it is not easy to cheat her, her blanket with tiger print can also express a strong opponent. Anyway, Richard can do it. His mother-in-law, Erika Tankó, who can experience the time, when he was the owner of power, and his fall too. It is a smaller role too, but it is an important one, that even the oldest generation must be shown.
Zoltán Balázs either can cheat or have killed anyone, or he can win them to his side for a while. He has enough energy to the two and a quarter of an hour-long performance, his virtuosity can be felt, he also enjoys the role, as Richard III enjoyed, according to Shakespeare, the performance, which he controlled, which did not have viewers just victims.
The programme emphasize, that however, he can be easily connected to the dictators of the present of past “but there is an important difference: he knows the moral world order. He chooses consciously the bad way. He does not think and does not lie that it is a good one.” Maybe that is the reason, why he cannot stay for long on the way he has chosen.
The watching of the performance gives the possibility to anyone to think these questions over, but who has not done it so far, those can do it next year, however it will be performed on 28th and 29th May, on the base of Maladype, but in reality for only fifty viewers have enough space. So you can get in, if you have not bought your tickets in advance, only if someone has not arrived.
Zsuzsanna Makk, Mezei néző, 2016
(translated by: Veronika Fülöp)