A Matchbox of White Cheese - Bir Kibrit Kutusu Beyaz Peynir
The new theatre play at Nicosia Municipality Theatre
By Heidi Trautmann
You want to lose weight? Follow one of the many diet
philosophies that spring up, for example
the Duke Diet you have probably heard of ….or much easier….get a ticket to see
it all on stage in Nicosia. A new play written and directed by Nehir Demirel;
she has picked up one of the topics that occupies society more than political
issues, that is people are looking for a system to go on living at the extreme
but keep trim at the same time, a formula to enjoy fully the goodies of our
society but not pay for it. There exists a certain matrix what a person has to
look like to fit into the image of beauty and health. An advertising company is
asked by the big boss – whoever that is – to promote the idea of a diet – a
piece of cheese and a pill. After people get seriously sick after treatment,
the big boss approaches the agency again to re-invent the diet by another name
and bring it onto the market again. For money people do anything because “money
is the sweetest thing in the world”.
A persiflage on society wonderfully staged by the team
of Nicosia Municipality Theatre, it is in Turkish and I would have loved to
understand all dialogues but the body language by the actresses and actors is so
good I could easily follow the general meaning. I went with three ladies from
our Thursday Art Group to the première and we enjoyed the play very much. You
could see that the acting team had a lot of fun themselves and by overdrawing
the statements into comical even ironic situations using full body involvement,
it became a most enjoyable experience.
The stage design was simple and effective which I like
– simple is always better – and by simply moving the set between the scenes
created different images; lighting and music effects were perfect. What I also
like and pay special attention to is a well done stage choreography, it creates
tension between the protagonists; I would compare it with the well succeeded
composition of a painting.
The parts were played by Osman
Ateş, Melek Erdil, Hatice Tezcan, Asu Demircioğlu, Erdoğan Kavaz, Barış Refikoğlu,
Cem Aykut, Aytunç Şabanlı and Melihat Melis Beşe and I was truly amazed to
discover new comical talents.
There were hilarious scenes: The dietician
holding an eating orgy with cream running down her bosom while prescribing the
diet plan to the patient; the reconstruction scheme and subsequent operations
on misled men and women by the plastic surgeon, or the tiredness that overcomes
the psychologist while listening to his patients. Also, the man that points out
how much he prefers the warm and happy feeling with a fat woman versus the edgy
character of a skinny one.
Playwritght and director: Nehir Demirel; dramaturg:Aliye Ummanel; assistant director: Erdoğan Kavaz; stage
and costume design: Özlem Deniz Yetkili; Lighting: Fırat Eseri, Music effects: Osman Ateş, advertising: Umut Ersoy; scenery:
Rıza Şen, stage
hands: Mehmet Eseri and Mehmet Demir.
The play is on on Fridays and Saturdays; tickets
reservation: Tel 227 87 82