In Hungarian / 18+
“None of us is perfect, and each one of us has their own secrets, no doubt. None of us is flawless... But we are sane fanatics of reality, living a treadmill of good compromises.” (Comrade Pánczél)
The first part of this two-part drama by Béla Pintér is an exposure of an aspect of Hungary’s recent past that has thus far been neglected, not only on the theatre stage but also in public life: its subject is those who informed on others during the Socialist era, and those about whom their reports were made. It’s portrayal of individual tragedies reveals how the Communist regime as a whole operated in those times.
“Pintér’s drama is about those who, however hard they tried (in this case by taking part in the folklore dance movement in Hungary), could not escape the machinery of Communist rule; who despite all personal efforts could not flee the machinery that overwhelmed everything – families, love affairs, individuals and, in the final analysis, societies. It is also about those who volunteered to serve this machinery, so as to take revenge or (due to their ideological brainwashing) seek to gain power by way of opportunism; who were not aware that the graves they were digging for others, would, finally, turn out to also be their own.+ (Bálint Kovács, Egyfelvonás blog)
“Béla Pintér is arguably the only playwright-director in Hungary who can pull off such a drama, laying bear the subconscious of a paedophile’s schizoid mind, and the bittersweet moments which occur as families fall apart, while introducing a brand new insight into the world of informers in Hungary’s recent Communism past; coming up with an accurate description of an era that has only recently passed away, yet has left its traces to the present day, while delicately fading in and out Hungarian folklore music and hits of the 70s and 80s; and presenting all this within a two-hour performance, with a plot of tightly interwoven story-lines that will make you laugh out loud one moment, and feel excruciating pain the next, without compromising any of the details of the story. ‘Our Secrets’ will make you suffer as well as smile, while stirring up so many thoughts that you will, even days after the performance, still think back on it, seeking to recall the interrelations of the play’s plot and to decipher it’s symbolism.” (Éva Szilléry, Magyar Hírlap)
CAST
Balla Bán István – Zoltán Friedenthal
Dr Szádeczky Elvira, Pánczél elvtárs – Eszter Csákányi
Kata – Hella Roszik
Timike – Éva Enyedi
Zakariás Bea – Kata Pető
Tatár Imre – Béla Pintér
Szujó, Pincér, Pogány – Szabolcs Thuróczy
Tatár Ferenc, Ági – Angéla Stefanovics
Borbíró – György Póta
Konkoly – Gábor Pelva
MUSICIANS
Pelva Gábor – violin, viola, guitar
Póta György – synthesizer, double-bass, viola
Roszik Hella – violin
Dramaturg: Éva Enyedi
Costume Designer: Mari Benedek
Costume Designer’s Assistant: Julcsi Kiss
Stage: Gábor Tamás
Lighting: László Varga
Sound: Zoltán Belényesi
Props: László Quitt
Financial Assistant: Gyula Inhaizer
Production Assistant: Eszter Uri
Director’s Assistant: Rozi Hajdú
Playwright and Director: Béla Pintér
“None of us is perfect, and each one of us has their own secrets, no doubt. None of us is flawless... But we are sane fanatics of reality, living a treadmill of good compromises.” (Comrade Pánczél)
The first part of this two-part drama by Béla Pintér is an exposure of an aspect of Hungary’s recent past that has thus far been neglected, not only on the theatre stage but also in public life: its subject is those who informed on others during the Socialist era, and those about whom their reports were made. It’s portrayal of individual tragedies reveals how the Communist regime as a whole operated in those times.
“Pintér’s drama is about those who, however hard they tried (in this case by taking part in the folklore dance movement in Hungary), could not escape the machinery of Communist rule; who despite all personal efforts could not flee the machinery that overwhelmed everything – families, love affairs, individuals and, in the final analysis, societies. It is also about those who volunteered to serve this machinery, so as to take revenge or (due to their ideological brainwashing) seek to gain power by way of opportunism; who were not aware that the graves they were digging for others, would, finally, turn out to also be their own.+ (Bálint Kovács, Egyfelvonás blog)
“Béla Pintér is arguably the only playwright-director in Hungary who can pull off such a drama, laying bear the subconscious of a paedophile’s schizoid mind, and the bittersweet moments which occur as families fall apart, while introducing a brand new insight into the world of informers in Hungary’s recent Communism past; coming up with an accurate description of an era that has only recently passed away, yet has left its traces to the present day, while delicately fading in and out Hungarian folklore music and hits of the 70s and 80s; and presenting all this within a two-hour performance, with a plot of tightly interwoven story-lines that will make you laugh out loud one moment, and feel excruciating pain the next, without compromising any of the details of the story. ‘Our Secrets’ will make you suffer as well as smile, while stirring up so many thoughts that you will, even days after the performance, still think back on it, seeking to recall the interrelations of the play’s plot and to decipher it’s symbolism.” (Éva Szilléry, Magyar Hírlap)
CAST
Balla Bán István – Zoltán Friedenthal
Dr Szádeczky Elvira, Pánczél elvtárs – Eszter Csákányi
Kata – Hella Roszik
Timike – Éva Enyedi
Zakariás Bea – Kata Pető
Tatár Imre – Béla Pintér
Szujó, Pincér, Pogány – Szabolcs Thuróczy
Tatár Ferenc, Ági – Angéla Stefanovics
Borbíró – György Póta
Konkoly – Gábor Pelva
MUSICIANS
Pelva Gábor – violin, viola, guitar
Póta György – synthesizer, double-bass, viola
Roszik Hella – violin
Dramaturg: Éva Enyedi
Costume Designer: Mari Benedek
Costume Designer’s Assistant: Julcsi Kiss
Stage: Gábor Tamás
Lighting: László Varga
Sound: Zoltán Belényesi
Props: László Quitt
Financial Assistant: Gyula Inhaizer
Production Assistant: Eszter Uri
Director’s Assistant: Rozi Hajdú
Playwright and Director: Béla Pintér
EMMI, NKA, Szkéné Színház
