The greatest surprise is the news itself, Zoltán Balázs, who as the leader of the troupe Maladype, then in Bárka Theatre has had success with mythical, ceremony-like productions which mix opera, dance, prose and brought up later pouting from his funs, and now he puts on stage a regular realistic drama, The Tempest by Ostrovsky.

The rebellious woman’s drama is of course, the eternal symbol of individuality who fights with social restrictions too, Katya Kabanova’s story is deeply built into the Russian society of the XIX. century that tries to get out of the feudalism. The director tells the tragic story in spectacular, suggestive pictures, and lights sharply the humiliating vulnerability and the suicidal rebellion. The sharp lightening is there in its reality too: as we were on a film shooting, reflectors are moving on rails, as indiscreet cameras are watching the intimate moments of the middle-age-like world. Zoltán Balázs does not work as a brave formal rebellion, as the determined researcher of strange solutions on stage, but he elevates from ground the play that paints the reality, with the really punctual and calculated usage of fine tools. It can be taken by words too: Judit Gombár’s set is a half bridge that goes up, the symbol of broken, struck decisions and jumps. The scenes happen on and under it too, on its ending, vertical wall they can climb up and down on handrails. The lover Boris climbs up on it and Katya climbs down from it to die. During the scenes we can sometimes hear the appropriate part of the Moravian composer’s - Leos Janácek – opera, which was named by the title role. It is more than background music, it is a sensual and emotional interpretation many times, but it never wants to come before the text or the story.

Besides the vision of the director which is well formed, the interpretation is decided by the choice of the main character. Katya Tompos’ fragile appearance, her fine beauty and not at least vibrant play which can always show the always shaking soul inside makes clear all her actions, words are led by the aim of suicide. She rebels and cheats her far existing husband, and mainly that is why she admits her act to get rid of her unbearable life. According to Olga Varjú’s performance the old Kabanova with solid inner belief, strongly but hypocritically ceremonially believes that the keeping of the ancient forms means the saving of the ancient lifestyle too. Balázs Dévai excellently puts together her son’s, Tihon’s character who is indecisive and helpless: in all his gestures we can find the resistance of mind but he does not dare to rebel. He knows that his mother’s claims are meaningless but he does them, however just formally in an emphasised way, without any inner belief, to be able to escape to the pub soon from all of the conflicts. Zalán Makranczi shows the intellectual Boris, Katya’s lover, as someone who is pushed by the circumstances, who does not dare to rebel in a real way. Éva Bakos, in the role of the pilgrim woman shows the mad woman of the village from the middle age, the believer of superstitions, the ghost-like figure of her. Kamilla Fátyol, who is in the role of Katya’s sister-in-law and tempter, gives the practical user of the circumstances. Róbert Kardos as Dikov with confident stupidity, Artúr Kálid the inventor of the village with familiar silly rationality shadows the picture of society. Ádám Tompa characterises Kudriash with crying laugh, while Hermina Fátyol shows with closed attitude the Kabanovs’ servant.

The performance is double faced. It is really photogenic – mainly from above, from where the set rules wonderfully. From the lower lines of the auditorium we can see the drama better.

László Zappe, Népszabadság, 2007

(translated by: Veronika Fülöp)