class="">Sorin Misirianţu: „Fortunately, children do not have a sense of tragedy. But I kept everything in memory.“

October 12^th 2015

Director Sorin Misirianţu lives in Cluj. He studied acting at the Theatre and Film Institute Bucharest, with late professor Ion Cojar, and directing at the Theatre Department of the Faculty of Letters, at the Babeş- Bolyai University Cluj-Napoca. He worked as a theatre director in Bucharest and other Romanian cities, as well as in Lahore, Pakistan.

The performance “20 Years in Siberia”, a dramatic monologue adapted after „20 Years in Siberia. Memories from Life” by Aniţa Nandriş-Cudla, is a production of the „I.L.Caragiale” National Theatre Bucharest, selected to this edition of the National Theatre Festival. The drama depicted in this theatre performance is very much alike the one experienced by the director’s family.

An interview by Florina Tecuceanu

Florina Tecuceanu:  Did you expect this selection at the NTF ?

Sorin Misirianţu:  I’m pleased and honored by this surprise, it’s my first participation.

What triggers have determined you to stage a performance about recent history, about communism,  in which we all recognize ourselves?

For a long time, I had been staging comedies of different styles, in various manners. I felt time had come to approach other areas; I felt a desire to experiment and explore the dephts of the theatrical act. Both Amalia Ciolan and myself felt the same vibration when reading Aniţa Nandriş-Cudla’s book. I wrote a dramatization of the novel and we started our attempt, without even knowing if Mr. Caramitru and the staff of the National Theatre would accept this production. It’s a zero budget performance, based merely on our inspiration. Or perspiration.

There is a similar personal history, in your family. Can you share this story?

My father and grandparents come from Czernovitz. They were rich people,  they had their mansions and marble quarries. They were oppressed by the Russians and they came to the small town of Reşiţa with just one suitcase. They have rewritten our family history in this new country, Romania. Had they not sought refuge, we wouldn’t be making this interview today…Still, even if the story of the main character strikes a chord for me, I did not aim at putting up a manifest against communism. My plays try to transmit emotions. I had the feeling that I will be able to do that, through this text and with Amalia’s help. The performance creates emotion; the audience leaves the theatre with a new experience, enriched. I feel gratified.

I was a child; I couldn’t understand the drama my family was living. Fortunately, children do not have a sense of tragedy. Still, I memorized everything, my DNA got impregnated with it. Making this performance was like an automatic action.

How did you take up contact with Aniţa Nandriş-Cudla’s book?

« 20 Years in Siberia » is a book from another world. It transforms you. You certainly see life differently after you read it. I was deeply moved by this woman’s drama. I’ve realized how much faith, faith in God means. Aniţa was prepared to embrace the divine light, and she shed this light upon her children. In the work camp she acted as their mother, priest and friend. I felt the need to convey what I experienced while reading the book. And I did it through this play.

„20Years in Siberia / pain, hope, despair, separation, will power, fighting, pure soul, cleansing through suffering, sublimation through suffering, freedom, divine light. Learining how to love and forgive those who hurt us. Increasing our vibrations, spiritual development, rebirth. I hope you will relish the performance. Amalia Ciolan is a special actress. I do appreciate her a lot!

The performance is based on the confession of a woman.  What element did you use in order to create tension, given the absence of dialogue?

Since it’s a one woman show, we insisted on dynamism, we used the Artaud theatre patterns. The performance is not a mere suite of words. We fought against static. Music, video projections and the impetus of the actress, an actress whom God loves, Amalia Ciolan, did help.

October 12^th 2015