Above-average determination - Interview with Zoltán Balázs / 2017
The road to Maladype Theatre is unusual, as we approach the venue, which is a large bourgeois apartment, through the stairwell of a bourgeois house on Mikszáth Square. Upon entering the theatre, we find ourselves in a completely extraordinary, yet extremely welcoming foyer. It is a space where it is clear from the very first moment that the theatre is finally letting us in. At Maladype, the audience becomes privy to the process of theatrical creation through shared thinking with the actors performing in the plays. A lively, authentic, dynamic, and fresh spirit within the walls of a bourgeois apartment. We spoke here with actor-director Zoltán Balázs, artistic director of Maladype.
Being this close to the audience is not a natural thing. What is the secret of the magic of theatre in an apartment?
Although several theatre companies around the world are working to eliminate the classic relationship between stage and auditorium by placing the actors and audience in a shared space, few have managed to take possession of the space as organically as the actors of Maladype have done at our Base, in a large bourgeois apartment. One of the keys to this is "shared, all-encompassing attention." Through direct and personal acting, the actors unobtrusively enable the audience to focus on several things at once: the text, the movement, the rapidly changing relationship between actor and audience, or the external noises filtering in from Mikszáth Square, which are incorporated into the performance of the day through the sensitivity of the actors. We have worked hard to build a stable and regularly returning audience base that understands Maladype's unique vision and way of thinking and can interpret it for others. Our unique theatrical approach offers our audience not just one-off experiences, but processes: introductory programs, open rehearsals and regular discussions.
This must be the result of a very conscious development process. Did you shape and select the entire company according to this principle?
Those who perform at Maladype must have above-average determination, as choosing the life of independent theatre makers is not an easy path. Motivation can come from the spirit of the theatre, the concept of the artistic director, its professional credibility, and its recognition both at home and abroad. The company's members are actors who are curious and open to change, unexpected situations, and mischief.
Are young people open to your world? Do you think the stereotype that Generation Y is less receptive to offline activities such as theatre is true?
It is often said that the youngest generation is more interested in the internet and cinema today. This is partly true, and looking at the reasons for this, I think that theatre representatives and creators are in debt to them...
What is this debt?
That theatre makers are rarely in sync with the everyday problems and everyday transformations of Generation Y! The creators themselves do not really share their insights and experiences with each other, so their theatrical offerings and stage solutions—to use Bulgakov's words—remain secondary in their freshness. Thoughts that are often abstract and shrouded in mystical fog, as well as direct statements and artistic messages, stand in the way of integrative, sensitive, and controllable joint development that is also open to young people. The theatre, as a space for the creative possibilities of shared insights, often represents an isolated and barren surface for young people who want to transpose the reality of everyday life into a new truth. We theatre people, unfortunately, have not been able to pass on certain fundamental theatrical values to them in a timely manner and with valid solutions. In this sense, theatre is most similar to native horticulture, where the experimental young generation cannot expect to breed new species, novelties, or exotic plants.
What can all this lead to? Where does collective change and redesign lead overall?
I believe that if theatre arts can be revitalized with human and professional values that we draw from the diverse and rich anthropological and cultural treasures of the world and incorporate into our own development and open-mindedness, then much more complex, extreme, and dynamic solutions can emerge in our theatres.
Leaving your comfort zone and introducing these new elements is not always risk-free. Aren't you afraid that your imported exotics will become invasive and suppress the original roots?
Every change involves risk. If a creator—no matter how skilfully they juggle their existing knowledge—does not maintain their willingness to experiment, they will inevitably begin to live off their past achievements. The relics of the past, the "things we have brought with us," are extremely important for human development, but we also need change, uncertainty, and the thrill of discovery that comes with the unknown. In Schiller's play Don Carlos, when Philip II questions change, development, and progressive thinking, Marquis Posa responds with the following sentence: "I may seem dangerous because I think above myself!" It is difficult for me to formulate a more accurate and timely answer than this. If everyone chose only the safe path, conformism associated with reduction would prevail in every case. If everyone chose only the safe path, conformism, with all its limitations, would always prevail.
How can the innovative new generation work together in the theatre with experienced, older, and perhaps more traditional artists?
I read a valid answer to this question in a book by actor Ferenc Bessenyei, who, when asked how the younger and older generations can work and create together, replied:
"We, the experienced older generation, are strong enough to carry the young people who, standing on our shoulders, tell us with their sharp vision where we should go together."
Maladype sees the directions quite clearly! What are your goals?
I would like to believe that every night we manage to add something to our audience's perspective and changing outlook. I don't think what we do is "terribly important" or "indispensable," but generating "little sparks" is a serious responsibility and challenge, and of course a joy. That's what makes our work worth doing.
Rita Jánoska, &U Magazin, 2017
Translated by Lena Megyeri
Being this close to the audience is not a natural thing. What is the secret of the magic of theatre in an apartment?
Although several theatre companies around the world are working to eliminate the classic relationship between stage and auditorium by placing the actors and audience in a shared space, few have managed to take possession of the space as organically as the actors of Maladype have done at our Base, in a large bourgeois apartment. One of the keys to this is "shared, all-encompassing attention." Through direct and personal acting, the actors unobtrusively enable the audience to focus on several things at once: the text, the movement, the rapidly changing relationship between actor and audience, or the external noises filtering in from Mikszáth Square, which are incorporated into the performance of the day through the sensitivity of the actors. We have worked hard to build a stable and regularly returning audience base that understands Maladype's unique vision and way of thinking and can interpret it for others. Our unique theatrical approach offers our audience not just one-off experiences, but processes: introductory programs, open rehearsals and regular discussions.
This must be the result of a very conscious development process. Did you shape and select the entire company according to this principle?
Those who perform at Maladype must have above-average determination, as choosing the life of independent theatre makers is not an easy path. Motivation can come from the spirit of the theatre, the concept of the artistic director, its professional credibility, and its recognition both at home and abroad. The company's members are actors who are curious and open to change, unexpected situations, and mischief.
Are young people open to your world? Do you think the stereotype that Generation Y is less receptive to offline activities such as theatre is true?
It is often said that the youngest generation is more interested in the internet and cinema today. This is partly true, and looking at the reasons for this, I think that theatre representatives and creators are in debt to them...
What is this debt?
That theatre makers are rarely in sync with the everyday problems and everyday transformations of Generation Y! The creators themselves do not really share their insights and experiences with each other, so their theatrical offerings and stage solutions—to use Bulgakov's words—remain secondary in their freshness. Thoughts that are often abstract and shrouded in mystical fog, as well as direct statements and artistic messages, stand in the way of integrative, sensitive, and controllable joint development that is also open to young people. The theatre, as a space for the creative possibilities of shared insights, often represents an isolated and barren surface for young people who want to transpose the reality of everyday life into a new truth. We theatre people, unfortunately, have not been able to pass on certain fundamental theatrical values to them in a timely manner and with valid solutions. In this sense, theatre is most similar to native horticulture, where the experimental young generation cannot expect to breed new species, novelties, or exotic plants.
What can all this lead to? Where does collective change and redesign lead overall?
I believe that if theatre arts can be revitalized with human and professional values that we draw from the diverse and rich anthropological and cultural treasures of the world and incorporate into our own development and open-mindedness, then much more complex, extreme, and dynamic solutions can emerge in our theatres.
Leaving your comfort zone and introducing these new elements is not always risk-free. Aren't you afraid that your imported exotics will become invasive and suppress the original roots?
Every change involves risk. If a creator—no matter how skilfully they juggle their existing knowledge—does not maintain their willingness to experiment, they will inevitably begin to live off their past achievements. The relics of the past, the "things we have brought with us," are extremely important for human development, but we also need change, uncertainty, and the thrill of discovery that comes with the unknown. In Schiller's play Don Carlos, when Philip II questions change, development, and progressive thinking, Marquis Posa responds with the following sentence: "I may seem dangerous because I think above myself!" It is difficult for me to formulate a more accurate and timely answer than this. If everyone chose only the safe path, conformism associated with reduction would prevail in every case. If everyone chose only the safe path, conformism, with all its limitations, would always prevail.
How can the innovative new generation work together in the theatre with experienced, older, and perhaps more traditional artists?
I read a valid answer to this question in a book by actor Ferenc Bessenyei, who, when asked how the younger and older generations can work and create together, replied:
"We, the experienced older generation, are strong enough to carry the young people who, standing on our shoulders, tell us with their sharp vision where we should go together."
Maladype sees the directions quite clearly! What are your goals?
I would like to believe that every night we manage to add something to our audience's perspective and changing outlook. I don't think what we do is "terribly important" or "indispensable," but generating "little sparks" is a serious responsibility and challenge, and of course a joy. That's what makes our work worth doing.
Rita Jánoska, &U Magazin, 2017
Translated by Lena Megyeri