WHO (STILL) NEEDS THE THEATRE?

Abstract

This paper uses the Philther method to examine the first production of the 1999/2000 season of the Újvidéki Színház (Novi Sad Theatre), Six Characters in Search of an Author. The production, based on the play of the same title by Luigi Pirandello, was directed by the Romanian artist George Ivaşcu, who was working with the company for the first time. Through Six Characters, Ivaşcu explored questions such as: to whom can theatre speak at the turn of the millennium, and does the audience need something more beyond reality? The text of the drama had been significantly altered; the performance included snapshots from other theatre productions, and it also referenced the frequent blackouts at the time of the South Slavic War. Ivaşcu’s production of Pirandello received numerous awards and critical acclaim from critics in Yugoslavia, Hungary, and Romania. László Gerold considered Six Characters to be one of the finest and most important productions of the Novi Sad Theatre.