Attended at a theater performance you just don’t find on every corner. Was Shakespeare’s “Comedy of Errors” at the Jókai Theater at the City of Békéscsaba. This play was the first premiere of the new season. The play is still popular anywhere, anytime around the world since the Renaissance. Shakespeare’s masterpiece is filled with laughter and always in a way tragic, but surely provide some lessons to be heard! An unbridled comedy where complications, jealousy, vanity and human weaknesses show up. Even though this piece of Shakespeare was written in 1592, we may feel familiar within the similarities in the 21st century and some tragic lessons can be recognized even to-day.
At the entrance of the Békéscsaba Jókai Theater invited guests were welcomed along the red carpet by Péter Fekete – former long time director of the Békéscsaba Jókai Theater, who applied for the position to be the Head at Hungarian Circus and Variety Office and Zoltán Seregi former deputy director who is from August, 1., in charge acting director at Békéscsaba Jókai Theater.
The scene takes place at city of Ephesus where, as each city can be found among the inhabitants the bad girls, merchants, privileged people and servants, so it is simple as that. Shakespeare perfectly presents the audience laughter and tragedy at the same time.
The performance offered a parade of stars who were all to ensure perfect evening. Imre Csiszár – Jászai Mari Prize and Outstanding Artist directed a quality performances at Békéscsaba. In the role of Antipholus of Ephesus – Zoltán Bezerédi -Kossuth Prize actor from the Katona József Theater in Budapest played the role. Shakespeare’s comedy was staged by the translation of Imre Szász. The costume designer – Györgyi Szakács – Jászai and Kossuth Prize. The music has been compiled by Virág Csiszár. The stage movement was designed by Péter Mlinar.
Shakespeare’s works focus on the ageless and people skills that make the play eternal, high-quality performances perpetuate, Solinus, the role of the Duke of Ephesus was the Jászai-winner – Gyula Bartus, Aegean Syracuse trader Ferenc Jancsik. A set of other great actors with their colorful diction was Ferenc Katkó, Attila Gulyás, Lajos Csomós, Tamás Presits, Lajos Szabó, Attila Czitor and Keve M. Ormandy. Emilia, Aegeon’s wife and the nun prioress was played by Edit Kovács, Adriana, Antipholus of Ephesus’s wife by Anett Komáromi, Luciana, her sister by Melinda Liszi. The House of Theater Studies students were given a chance in many multi-playing acts. Individual and community conflicts, situation comedies and characteristics an inexhaustible reservoir.
Complete works, validity and popularity of Shakespeare are authoring wisdom, humor, based on visual points. The performance on stage was very lively, a real bustle. Four buildings … two residential building, a convent and a locale and the actors were running in-and-out, around the places.
Everyone is looking for something … in a rush for their money, looking for their pair, or just wants to fulfill their master’s command. Because of the confusion the roles are mixed up. They do not find their place in the world, they feel they slipped their ground from under their feet, have lost their personality, their identity, became a stranger in their own environment, they experience serious spiritual crisis. Quite ordinary story, it happens often, even to-day, with, in and around us. Quite often to be left no legs to stand on.
The dramatic tension dissolves only at the end of the play when the roles are clarified and come to be a Happy The-End.
After the play, the guest were invited to the reception party at the theater’s hall, whereas the award ceremony also took place during the evening of the Wine Knights of the Region. Beside the seven men there was only one lady who bore the title of wine knight arriving from Szeged.
Update and snaps by Aggie Reiter
Rolling in Budapest 