Foto Istvan Biro
Andrei Serban introduces the “cinematic theater” paradigm on the Romanian stage
Beginning with the first moment of this experience, the spectator becomes aware that something is being prepared for him. Even before climbing the stairs to the newly opened studio of the Hungarian Theater in Cluj, they are asked to cover their shoes, the way it happens in some museums or churches. From that moment on, the „preparation” begins. It will continue in the lobby where there is a small installation - a red platform with a director chair at the end of it on which one can read „Bergman”. The actor playing Bergman’s part will come and start telling a story about how the idea to write the script for “Whispers and Cries” came to him, how did he find the money for the movie production and how he fought one of his critics – and even got punished for his violence towards the critic. Then he calls the actresses and in front of the audience informs them about the parts they’re supposed to play and gives them a detailed description of their characters.
In fact, director Andrei Serban de-constructs Bergman’s movie and brings its parts before the spectators – in a genuine brechtian style – showing to them the inner side of the art work, all the secret mechanisms that make this modern miracle function. The director together with Daniela Dima) wrote a new text incorporating the script of the movie, fragments from Bergman’s book, “The Magic Lantern” and some of Serban’s own considerations on theater, actors and their relationship with the characters. The production is a typical example of “epic theater”, fully respecting Brecht’s theory about the “separate tableaus” which should compose such a piece of theater, combined with moments of complete distancing of the actors from their characters – they can even question these characters – and with the shifting of the spectators’ perspective who become, in turns, involved then analytical.
The spectators are introduced into the hall of the theater through the performing space – a red cube where one can see a couple of elements composing the set design. All of them are copying those in the movie, and so do the costumes (set-design and costume design – Carmencita Brojboiu). Each scene is then played following the instructions of Bergman character. Serban uses the lights to underline the moments when he attempts to recreate the illusion and does so with an exquisite talent. Except the cases when he uses dreadful coloured spots to cut into the darkness and focus on the actors’ faces, while a voice in the off introduces a new scene (it’s not the idea of doing so, it’s just the brutal colours he uses – I suppose it’s a matter of taste). Indications typical for the movie are used meanwhile – cut, fade in, fade out – as well as a sound track reminding the original one in the movie, based on low voices and whispers.
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Choosing the form of “epic theater” and mixing the tableaus and the moment of rehearsals, when the tension is meant to be broken and an analytical perspective is imposed – “Ingmar, I don’t know how to play suffering, death…”, says the actress that plays Agnes, or “Ingmar, why do I do that?”, asks the actress that play Katrin after the scene in which her character is cutting herself with a piece of glass – and Ingmar explains everything. He explains, in fact, the essence of how to become a character and that is how Serban gets to the heart of what was called by theorists “cinematic theater”1.
”.Cinematic theater can be defined as the theater that has a cinematic (film) form and structure, and functions (operates) as if it were a film(...). without eradicating theater essence – the immediate life that it has on stage – these two principles, when applied to the theater space, redefine and reinterpret the theatrical stage according to the cinematic form, thereby enabling and defining the cinematic theater”.
It is all about a theater that takes into account the changes of perception that has influenced the theater and film consumers – as an effect of the avalanche of images that has been affected spectators for decades now, changing their sensibility and forcing the creators to invent new forms to get to a new feeling. A theater that evaluates itself and questions its condition, a theater that uses the dynamics of the movie to raise the bid of its own.
Even though this season we have a couple of new production inspired from famous movies, Serban is the first to introduce the paradigm of „cinematic theater”, the other stagings applying only one of its features, the movie montage, but not the brechtian distancing as one of the central axes of the production.
Due to its form, “Whispers and Cries” necessitates an effort of understanding from the audience and a special kind of effort from the actors. The first ones don’t have the opportunity to identify with the characters anymore and the second ones have to get in and out from their characters, as if they are rehearsing in front of the spectators. Bogdan Zsolt plays no less than 5 different people – all the male characters in the movie (the doctor, the priest and the two husbands of the sisters) plus the character of Ingmar Bergman. He handles all of them with an amazing confidence, finding small details that can suggests features for each of the characters and he quickly changes personalities as if it was a genius of improvisation and this truly seduces the audience.
Imola Kezdi (Maria) almost identify herself with her part, the resemblance with Liv Ullman being evident not only physically, but also in terms of general typology – beautiful, gorgeous woman which feeds herself from the people’s adoration and wants to be worm and kind, without being able to raise to her own expectations. She is rather childish and inattentive, moody as the weather outside and incapable of deep feelings. Emoke Kato (Karin) doesn’t have the advantage of physical resemblance but shares the silhouette with Bergman’s actress and has the same frozen expression on her face. She has an excellent control of her inner feelings. Csilla Varga (Anna) is less enigmatic and dark than her double in the movie but she’s so expressive that becomes one of the guide marks of the production, as her way of acting is so authentic and dedicated, especially in the scenes with Agnes that she protects as if she was her own child. As for Aniko Petho (Agnes), she does a better part when playing the young actress that laments because she doesn’t know how to play suffering and death. But she retrieves in the final scene with an expression of pure illumination on her face when she thanks for the chance of living a moment of happiness, in the company of her most beloved human beings on Earth, in a beautiful summer day.
The final is the only moment in the production when the dynamics of the production – very modern, ironical, especially made for the contemporary spectators - seem to break. After playing the final scene in the movie, all the actors are sitting down to watch together with the audience the projection of the same scene in the movie and afterwards they all get into a circle and make a bow in front of the open chair with Bergman’s name on it. It is a false, pretentious gesture, an example of bad theater. Fortunately, the entire show is an example of how theater as an art can stay alive.
1.Babak A. Ebrahimian - Cinematic Theater, The Scarecrow Press, Oxford, 2004
