Cluj-Napoca National Theatre reprises, this season, several successful productions from its repertoire. The first of them is the comedy JOHN WAYNE IS TO BLAME based on God of Carnage by Yasmina Reza and translated by Tudor Țepeneag, director Cristian Hadji-Culea. The cast is comprised of: Marian Râlea (Michel Houillé), Irina Wintze (Véronique Houllié), Diana Buluga (Anette Reille) and Miron Maxim (Alain Reille). Set designer: Valentin Codoiu, assistant set designer: Cătălina Chirilă. To get us in the "mood" we spoke briefly with the director Cristian Hadji-Culea and the actor Marian Râlea.
The production directed by you, Mr. Cristian Hadji-Culea, at Cluj-Napoca National Theatre, which premiered in 2014, was called God of Carnage. What are your thoughts upon returning to... John Wayne is to blame?
I return with the pleasure of seeing these wonderful actors again, actors full of talent desire to perform in such a powerful, full of psychological twists, text. It's play that generated great productions worldwide. Even a film directed by Roman Polanski. It speaks about very civilized, accomplished individuals. Highly educated. They read books, visit museums and exhibits. They are intellectuals who wish to avoid conflict between and within themselves.
Marian Râlea, what are your thoughts upon reprising Yasmina Reza's character, Michel Houillé?
Every comedy, including the human one designed by Yasmina Reza, is a joy. I don't know why but, after receiving the UNITER Award for the role of Tullius in Marble by Iosif Brodski, director Yuri Kordonsky, I feel obligated to play the role of Michel Houillé much more passionately. I am convinced that the UNITER jury also saw me in God of Carnage / John Wayne is to blame and that I owe a part of the award to the Cluj stage.
Cluj-Napoca National Theatre "responded" to the evolutions in the Romanian society, including this text, which premiered on 24 July 2014, in its repertoire. One of the characters, the prosperous businessman Alain Reille bluntly states: "I believe in the god of carnage. He has ruled, uninterruptedly, since the dawn of time. (...) As a matter of fact, I just came back from the Congo. Over there, little boys are taught to kill when they're eight years old. During their childhood, they may kill hundreds of people (...) so you'll understand that when my son picks up a bamboo rod, hits his playmate and breaks a tooth, or even two, in Aspirant Dunand Gardens, I am likely to be less disposed than you to horror and indignation." While another character, Véronique Houllié, tries to set things straight: "We're living in France. We're not living in Kinshasa! We're living in France, according to the principles of Western society. What goes on in Aspirant Dunand Gardens reflects the values of Western society! Of which, if it's all the same to you, I am happy to be a member."
And who is to blame for all this? John Wayne, whose virility represented a model since childhood: "When you're brought up with a kind of John Wayne‐ish idea of virility, you don't want to settle this kind of problem with a lot of yakking", says the father of the little aggressor. Nobody takes responsibility and all that is left to do is have fun.
Written by Yasmina Reza In 2006, the play God of carnage (Le Dieu du carnage) was first staged by Jurgen Gösch at Schauspielhaus in Zürich, in 2007, and later reprised at Berliner Ensemble. In January 2008, Yasmina Reza directed it herself at Theatre Antoine in Paris, with a cast comprising the famous theatre and film actress Isabelle Huppert. Roman Polanski's film, Carnage, based on Yasmina Reza's text, received the award for best adaptation at the Cannes festival in 2011.
Written by Eugenia Sarvari
