12 November | 22:00 – www.fnt.ro
The show has been available for viewing from Friday, November 12, from 22.00, until Sunday, November 14, at 22.00.
“It’s about the restitution of a an almost forgotten classical work of Romanian literature. It’s about the re-enactment of a familiar yet uncanny atmosphere. It is about rewriting (this comes as a continuation of my attempts with Scarred hearts by Max Blecher, Caragiale’s Injustice and The Forrest of the Hanged by Liviu Rebreanu). It is about the regret that time passes over so many wonderful pages of old literature, that almost nobody opens anymore, then it is also about this city with poor girls in a poor country full of sad poetry, an endless sadness, just like poverty.”- Radu Afrim
After short stories by Radu Tudoran
Cast:
Mura: Ada Lupu
Mamocica: Pușa Darie
Marinică: Cosmin Maxim
Stranger: Ionuț Cornilă
Petty Officer: Dumitru Năstrușnicu
The girls:
Dăruța: Diana Roman
Marusia: Diana Vieru
Aurica: Mălina Lazăr
Olea: Ioana Buta
Zina: Iuliana Budeanu
Veturia: Mara Lucaci
Vica : Diana Amitroaie
Lucica: Ioana Aciobăniței
The boys: Dumitru Georgescu, Radu Homiceanu
The constables: Florentin Hrițcu, Costică Baciu
Direction, script and sound: Radu Afrim
Set design: Cosmin Florea
Vocal arrangement, musical training, piano: Diana Roman
Assistant director: Alexandra Vieru
Vasile Alecsandri National Theatre Iași
Duration: 2 hrs 30 min
Performance in Romanian with English subtitles
https://www.teatrulnationaliasi.ro/stagiunea/ora-ul-cu-fete-sarace–212.html
“All the stories, inspired by a world where you can say nothing happens, like in Sadoveanu’s provincial fairs, have strong subjects, not devoid of sensational elements. It’s about the same atmosphere of perdition, in a small provincial town placed between the endless steppe and the Dnister’s Liman. We identify the White Fortress, the old Romanian village, disputed throughout the history by Tartars, Moldovians, Turks and Russians. The entire Bessarabian area, recovered from the Soviets, exerts a real fascination over the Romanians, by a somnolent and lascivious way of life, a result of the Slavic influence. Indolence or contemplation? Poverty or indifference towards worldly goods? Promiscuity or free sensuality? Inability to act or metaphysical vocation? It was hard for a writer, raised in a westernized Romania, to give an answer. But the attraction of a mysterious beyond still lingers. In this debut book there is a lot of epic by a very talented prose writer. But there is especially an attractive style that makes you truly see everything the author tells you about.” – Alex. Ștefănescu
“The political dimension, an obvious ad recurrent theme in Radu Afrim’s recent performances, is subtly diffused in The City with Poor Girls in a theatrical poetry that captures the eye, challenges the mind and melts the heart of the audience. The artist’s empathy with the hardships stemming from preconceptions regarding the weaker sex’ meaning in life is shrouded in a highly sensitive beauty. This creation is a transformative experience for all viewers.” – Oltița Cîntec, „Orașul cu fete sărace, împliniri și vulnerabilități”, Suplimentul de cultură, nr. 676/ 2020
