The Güzelyurt Belediye Theatre, with director Bekir Kara and his ensemble on tour!

I went to see the play on April 9, a play on tour coming to the Anafartarlar School in Girne/Kyrenia. I was curious to finally see one of the plays of Bekir Kara whom I had interviewed some weeks ago (see also under art news).

I was welcomed by Bekir’s theatre friends and his wife. Many families with children had come and it all looked like a village meeting in the house, children ran about and women were talking their day over, just like in the old days when the migrating theatres came to the villages or the Karagöz Shadow theatre was discussing the news of the island. In those days when there was still no television to distract you. Can Gazi from BRT and his wife had also come to see the play.

The actors and stage workers were running about to see after the light and other requirements.

Finally, half an hour late, the prompts lady sat down in one corner of the stage and the play began. It began with a short film showing bone dry fields, a lonely olive tree and water pipes without water at which stood a frustrated unhappy farmer.

This farmer Musa came home to his wife Sengül completely bent down with sorrow, his melons had the size of tomatoes. There, the voice of the muhtar came via a megaphone announcing that there would be a further water shortage, only every three days could he deliver. There were fights with the neighbour Sari Izzet who suspected that Sengül had robbed him of his ration of water. He took the rifle and in his rage wanted to shoot him. In the house lived also the young pretty sister Suzan flirting with the neighbour’s son, Coskun, both not caring about the water problem, but hits the attacker with a club on the head to protect her own family.

In the end the muhtar’s voice announces that the wells are absolutely empty. So what were the fights for, and the villagers sit together to think of what to do.

The parts were very well played, the scenery was a little poor and a better distribution of tables and chairs would have supported a more relaxed choreography instead of having them all sit in a line on the tables. The foreplay of a film scene was very positive.

What encouraged me was the topic of water taken up; the theatre is taking up problems, as it used to be in the old days and as it should be, theatre as admonisher, as a mirror of daily village events and problems. Well done, and a thank you to the Güzelyurt Belediye Theatre.

Director and playwright:

Bekir Kara

Cast:

Gülay Gündüz (Sengül)

Mehmet Çangar (Musa)

Hasret Kolcu (Suzan)

Hasan Siperci (Coskun)

Hüsnü Kargili (Sari Izzet)