STAGE WITHOUT BORDERS

Today the question of what the theatre of the new millennium will be like is more relevant than ever before. Some people believe that the theater of the Russian psychological school is a long outmoded way of communicating the stage material and that it is necessary to focus on the European theater now. But they barely imagine what the European theater of today is. Others talk about the search for some new forms, not very well knowing what they are and what they should express. Meanwhile, the theatre was and still is living its own life without paying much attention to the "theorists" or their troubles. It lives on, being part of an energy link with the audience which is not dictated by its geographical position but by the area of human habitation. Without going into the analytical arguments about the said problems, I would just note that the theater is always what the artist and its "consumer", i.e. the viewer, are. And each particular region has its own viewer and artist. There is a language of understanding between them, which is dictated by the time and is understandable and claimed in this particular place. Therefore, international theater festivals, exchange tours and, in general, all available methods of integration are highly important and necessary, as they will enable us not only to see but also to understand the issues and trends of the contemporary theater.

Theatre festivals, both national and international, are also conducted in Azerbaijan. Some by the Azerbaijan Union of theater figures, others in conjunction with the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. Recent years have seen several international conferences of theater practitioners and theorists. The third international theatreconference will be held in November this year to consider the issues and development trends of world theater. The theater, meanwhile, lives its life, trying itself and the audience for the strength of mutual affection. And international festivals and exchange tours are the factors that can identify and define the fields of mutual interest for both the theater and the audience.

Tours: small and exchange ones …

To be honest, I like the archaic word "tour" better than the current "tours". There is something fascinating from the life of the former acting fraternity who spent most of their lives earning money and fame. Originating from German, it means "a performance of one artist or a band not on their own platform". During the period of Soviet theater, performances were protracted and geographically designed by the bodies that governed the ideological process. The troupes would almost fully travel to other Soviet cities and please the local audience with their repertoire for a month. Whether it was profitable in terms of efficiency of the process is beyond the scope of this article. The main things that such tours left behind in people's memories were the anxiety at the box office, the sensations of the unknown audience, new creative relationships, acquaintances with local colleagues and the opportunity of professional growth to a completely different level. In short, everything was exciting and, of course, everyone looked forward to a tour. Now the tours are not an easy undertaking because they are fraught with many issues, not just financial. For example, customs. But the cultures of different countries cannot live in isolation, and the process of integration that has started suggests that such communication will also eventually become the norm. It is possible to start with little things. For example, small exchange tours, as it was done between the Russian theaters of Azerbaijan, Georgia and Russia (Astrakhan). The process of friendly exchange tours launched last year brought about a tendency for new creative contacts. The Griboyedov Russian Drama Theatre (Tbilisi) and the Vurgun Russian Drama Theatre (Baku) are not just theaters of countries that are close to each other. These theaters have the same historical roots. And if we recall that the Baku and Tbilisi (Tiflis) theaters were created by one and the same person, Vladimir Shveytser (Pessimist): first, the Baku satire theater (subsequently Bakinskiy Rabochiy), then the Proletkult satire theatre in Tiflis (subsequently named the Red Theatre), the theaters can be considered a family. And culture always unites because it is a territory where there are neither wars nor hatred. On the contrary, there is an interest in this work and a desire to know each other better.

Baku-Tbilisi. Comedy is no easy genre 

The play by Aleksandr Sharovskiy dedicated to the 200th birthday anniversary of Mirza Fatali Axundzada with the intriguing title "Monsieur Jordan, the botanist, and the dervish Mastali Shah, the famous magician", staged in the genre of light comedy, was received very well by the Tbilisi audience. The uncomplicated story of the Azerbaijani classic in the interpretation of the contemporary director has acquired the unforgettable national touches which allow the audience to perceive the play as an expressive ethnic picture. Inside it is the routine life of the people of Karabakh with their simple everyday concerns: how to raise children, how to ensure their future and how to make their lives richer. That is the simple idea of happiness. Yet deeper inside is the relationship between men and women. The wonderful costumes by Faxriya Xalafova have complemented the national touches with the credibility of the stage which allows you to perceive the play as a "guide" to national traditions and exotic pictures of everyday life.

Although the play is devoid of in-depth psychology, it requires careful design of the characters - living, recognizable, truthful. The director has worked on it with pleasure, therefore the almost anecdotal story about how women "destroyed" Paris is transformed into an exotic oriental fairy tale for adults: with the aroma of mountain herbs, national food, the peculiarities of national mentality. This is such a splint of Karabakh in stage terms that leaves no-one indifferent. The cheerful, easy, funny and very bright story (although Tuileries did fell and there was a revolution in Paris!) leaves pleasant memories - both about the characters and, of course, the actors. 

Tbilisi-Baku: drama can also be musical 

A return visit by the Griboyedov theater followed soon, and the system of creative contacts in the exchange structure rose to a new level. The theatre presented a play by its director Avtandil Varsimashvili based on Joshua Sobol's play "Ghetto". The play became famous in the latter half of the 1980s and went down in the history of the theater of the late 20th century as a protest against the Holocaust, genocide and other acts against humanity. It found a completely different sounding with the Georgians on the example of a Vilnius ghetto. The concept theatre of Varsimashvili is like conceptual art: the closer you look, the more you find harmonies with the present life and time. The producer has removed all the lines of side conflicts from the play (e.g. Gens and Weisskopf) to focus on the essential: the ghetto is not a geographical location, it is much worse. For it is an attack on the freedom of spirit, choice and law. In this case, it is also a ban of the soul (the worst biblical sin is an attack on someone else's soul!). For the soul of man is heard in full force only in the art of the people, in whatever form and genre it may be presented. The Jewish Ghetto cabaret theatre is presented in different genres, including jokes (scenes from Jewish life), singing and dancing.

Art cannot be killed. Even if it is placed in a reservation such as the ghetto. It will live as long as the soul of the people is alive. Its music, songs, culture. The concept theatre of Avtandil Varsimashvili is the artist's attitude towards society and its problems. Such a theater stimulates thought, leads one to think and empathize, to draw conclusions and make decisions. Marian Shvelidze, the artistic director of the play, provides a backdrop which depicts people representing Georgian society of the last century. They are placed in accordance with their social status: there are VIP seats and seats for those of lower ranks. And the stands are like on a racetrack. People from the last century comfortably watch what is happening. What were they building and what were they going to leave to their descendants? And how has this legacy been disposed of by those who represent the present-day society?

Epilogue 

So what should the theater be like today? As evidenced by history, the search for forms of expression, a sudden shocking approach to the interpretation of drama, the desire to impress the audience with beautiful effects do not provide stability in the relationship between the viewer and the theater. Let's recall the discoveries of the great filmmakers of the latter half of the 20th century - Peter Brook, Antonin Artaud, Christian Loop, Jerzy Grotowski, Anatoliy Vasilyev. Today they are just history. Today's directors bend over backwards in the struggle for the viewer. Therefore, the pursuit of the effects is not just an obsession, but an end in itself. But is it worth it? Can the theater compete with the cinema where it is already possible to watch movies in the 3D format? And isn't the man himself the subject of research for the theater? The computer graphics often used by the directors cannot give the effect of the hologram which arises in the space of a stage box. So isn't it better to arouse interest in the theater not by visuals but something more permanent? For example, emotion, a distinct idea? After all, the secret of the magic attraction of theater is not in the exuberance of the proposed forms. It is, I think, in the needs of the human spirit. Soul, if you will. Therefore, each theater has its own language with the audience ...