November 28 12:00 - TIFF House
Jelenkor Publishing House, 2018
A Trianon Hamlet, a black metal interpretation of The Robbers, and a zombie-apocalypse shot in the Káli Basin are all in the repertoire of the Füst Milán Theatre’s young actor. Taking on a role in the “intellectual survival horror” movie proved to be a bad decision from the part of the increasingly popular Alex Csáky. While being highly aware and deliberate in his professional decisions and building his career, by going through a series of professional and personal failures, he takes an increasingly critical look not only at the contemporary world of theatre and film, but he slowly ends up being in a conflictual relationship with himself.
János Térey's theatrical novel is pungently satirical and ruthlessly critical. It takes place in Budapest, the Káli Basin, Rome, Istanbul, St. Petersburg and Cluj-Napoca. Térey's readers may also encounter familiar characters from the author's first novel, but any similarity to any figure or event pertaining to contemporary Hungarian culture is merely coincidental. The situation, however, changes when it comes to the landscapes described.
János Térey (1970) is an important figure of contemporary Hungarian literature. His writings – be it poetry, prose or drama – are actual events of contemporary culture: they are strong, provocative, tough. Many of his plays have been performed by the best theatres in Budapest (Katona József Theatre, the National Theatre, the Radnóti Theatre).
