You have worked with several different companies over the years: you were a member of one of Budapest's leading theatres, and also performed in the countryside for many years. How did you find your home at the Maladype Theatre, led by Zoli Balázs?

I first worked with Zoli Balázs in Szolnok, where we both played in the same production. We didn't see each other for a long time after that, but we kept an eye on each other's work. Three years ago, my phone rang and he called to ask me to replace Kamilla Fátyol in Platonov. During rehearsals, I was in a terrible panic because Zoli's perfectionism was evident even in this stand-in role. Platonov became a performance close to my heart, and the following season I joined the company. When Zoli offered me membership in the Maladype company, I didn't think twice, because as actors we are responsible for ourselves and our acting skills. Talent is not a constant thing; it has to be maintained. Who you choose to work with makes all the difference.

Could you sum up why it is good for you to belong to Maladype?

I really like being here, simply because I like the others. We are a very small company, and I'm surrounded by people whom I hold in high regard professionally and, what is also important to me, personally as well. Despite all his fanaticism and madness, I can't think of anything more authentic than what Zoli represents.

The company will soon premiere Jean Genet's play The Balcony, directed by Sándor Zsótér, at Maladype Base. How is it different to work with him than with Balázs Zoli?

A long time ago, a few years after graduating from college, I already worked with Sándor Zsótér at the Katona Theatre on Gerhart Hauptmann's play Drayman Henschel. The most important thing is that they are both fanatical theatre makers and have distinct ideas about theatre. Their performances are recognizable from afar.

Despite his strong ideas, is he open to your ideas too?

I believe in the kind of theatre where actors can also exploit their creative abilities. Obviously, Zoli has a clear vision of the performance and my role, but he also listens to my opinion. After all, I'm the one who has to go on stage.

What kind of performance can the audience expect?

The Balcony is an exciting and complex play. The story takes place in a house of illusions, also known as a brothel, where people go to play the roles they desire but cannot fulfil in real life. The illusion later becomes mixed with reality. Meanwhile, revolution breaks out in the streets. The character I play, The Court Envoy, is one of the most unusual characters in the entire play. I am present as an outsider, a kind of observer, who then establishes completely new rules. I only have two longer scenes, but regardless, the work is intense and I really enjoy it. If it weren't intense, I wouldn't enjoy it, and if I didn't enjoy it, it wouldn't be intense.

If you could choose anyone in the world, whose life would you live for a day?

The performance includes the line: "Everything beautiful on earth you owe to masks." People are forced to wear many "masks" throughout their lives. Everyone plays someone or something. If you think about it, you are already choosing a role when you decide what to wear in the morning. I would rather live my own days more intensely than live someone else's. Life often forces me to deal with things that I don't really feel are my business. In such cases, I play the role of a secretary or a dispatcher behind my own mask. The biggest problem in the world is that people are forced to spend their time on things that are not their business and should not be their business.

Which part of your role are you particularly fond of and grateful to be able to show?

My entire role and performance. I have never had a role like this before. Being present in a performance almost as a civilian, but at the same time not quite, is very exciting.

What would you like to read in the reviews after the performance?

I don't really read reviews. I've had bad experiences with them. Once, at the beginning of my career, a review tore me down, and I took it so much to heart that I performed poorly for quite a few shows after that. I have people in my circle whose opinions I trust. Actors are very sensitive people, which is why criticism can be very damaging and harmful if it is not well-intentioned. By well-intentioned, I don't mean that you have to write only nice things and praise everyone, even if they are not good. Criticism that is not necessarily complimentary can also be well-intentioned.

If another theatre called you to play, let's say, the role of a soubrette in an operetta, would you say yes?

Of course, why not? It's good for an actor to perform as much as possible and have as many roles as possible. Of course, the first thing I would do is discuss it with Zoli Balázs, if I felt like doing it, and I would be happy to try out what it would be like to work in a different environment with the three years of experience and perspective of Maladype. If it happened, it would only be possible on the basis of mutual trust between Zoli and me.

Georgina Helyes, kozonseg.hu, 2017

Translated by Lena Megyeri