The Kravchenko Case
Maladype Theatre launched its program series titled Kravchenko Case in 2015. The series is based on Victor Kravchenko’s book I Chose Freedom, which was published for the first time in Hungary by Maladype Theatre for the 22nd International Book Festival Budapest. The text was translated by Péter Konok historian, while the cover was designed by Kossuth Prize-winning graphic designer, István Orosz. The book launch event was held at the Írók Boltja [Writers’ Bookshop] on November 6, 2015 and the publication was introduced by György Csepeli sociologist, the President of the Hungarian Sociological Association; Zoltán Sz. Bíró, historian, research fellow at the Institute of History at the Research Centre for the Humanities, Hungarian Academy of Sciences; Péter Konok, historian, the translator of the book; and Zoltán Balázs, the artistic director of Maladype Theater. With significant interest from both the public and the media, the event also featured a video message by the LA-based Andrew Kravchenko, the son of the author.
Video from the book launch event:
https://youtu.be/u3UKrt1oXC0
The material was turned into a performance, the premiere of which was staged and performed as a one-person manifesto by actor-director Zoltán Balázs, the artistic director of Maladype Theatre, on November 14, 2015.
A comprehensive theater-in-education program was developed by Maladype Theatre based on the performance. Focusing on the active, partnership-based involvement of disadvantaged and extremely gifted children of the ages 14-18 and their teachers, the program encourages the joint examination of democratic values, citizen rights, personal and collective freedom, active citizen participation, the capability for responsible decision-making, and various social processes. The theater-in-education program is realized in the form of a series of mini-trials where students can formulate their thoughts about the aforementioned issues as judges, prosecutors, attorneys, defendants, plaintiffs, and jurors. Victor Kravchenko’s lawsuit serves as the base and starting point for the trials.
Expert consultants involved in the project: Judit Bíró sociologist, head of the Minority Studies Department at Eötvös Loránd University Faculty of Social Sciences; Zsuzsanna Gyimesi, research area: Russia, administrator expert at Center for Russian Studies, Eötvös Loránd University, Faculty of Humanities; Zoltán Borbély, attorney at law, former spokesperson for the Office of the Prosecutor General; György Csepeli, sociologist, social psychologist, President of the Hungarian Sociological Association; Péter Konok, historian, translator of the book; Attila Pók, historian, appointed director of the Institute of History at the Research Centre for the Humanities, Hungarian Academy of Sciences; Zoltán Sz. Bíró, historian, research fellow at the Institute of History at the Research Centre for the Humanities, Hungarian Academy of Sciences.
2015-2016.January 14, 2016: Mándy Iván Vocational School and Specialized School – Budapest, HungaryDecember 8, 2015: Gandhi High School – Szilásvárad, Hungary January 7, 2016: Kalyi Jag Roma National School – Miskolc, Hungary January 11, 2016: Dr. Ámbédkar School, Amnesty International School – Alsózsolca, Hungary April 13, 2016: Zrínyi Ilona Secondary Grammar School – Miskolc, Hungary April 18, 2016: Mándy Iván Vocational School and Specialized School – Budapest, Hungary April 7, 14, and 28, 2016: Nemes Nagy Ágnes School – Budapest, Hungary |