Being an actor is a wonderful job. Terrible.
\nSuperb. Ludicrous. Extraordinary. Horrendous. Uplifting. Embarrassing. That’s
\nwhat it is all about in Stage Dogs and the show stands real chances of
\nblowing people’s minds. That’s how Florin Piersic Jr. has introduced the show
\nhe created and stage-directed. Actually the show marks the encounter on stage
\nbetween two very talented actors, who are as renowned as they are charismatic:
\nMarcel Iures and Florin Piersic Jr.. As for Stage Dogs, it is a
\nproduction of Act Theatre, the first independent theatre with its own headquarters
\nin Romania after 1989. In 2018, the Act Theatre celebrated two decades since
\nits establishment. Inspired by David Mamet’s A Life in the Theatre, Stage
\nDogs opens the door to the backstage of a performance. <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
\n
\n
<\/p>\n
Make people happy. Make them cry,
\nmake them laugh, take them as far as you can, make them forget. But make sure
\nyou never lie to them!<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
\n
\n
<\/p>\n
These words, written by Florin
\nPiersic Jr., are uttered by Marcel Iures towards the end of the performance and
\ntheir impact is so strong that words are almost impossible to forget. We asked
\nMarcel Iures how easy or how difficult it is for an actor to make an effort not
\nto lie to the audience, while on stage. <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
\n
\n
<\/p>\n
No one knows. Many are just
\npretending. And they pretend out of their need to clear up things, to reach a
\nconclusion. But it is a calling without conclusions. What I believe is that
\nwhat is fascinating in this show, as it is written by Florin and the way we act
\nit, is the fact that a light shines in this dark ditch. On one side there is
\nman’s need to create legends, to invent, there are many mysteries, more or less
\njustified, and our own notoriety and celebrity. As Florin says in scene 9: we
\nget up on stage as mere schizophrenics, we are trembling, we are going
\ninsane… we have the feeling that we are someone by pretending we are someone
\nelse. We shiver and have small heart attacks, every night. In fact, we are
\ndeeply frightened.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
\n
\n
<\/p>\n
The script of Stage Dogs is
\nbuilt as a story between a sacred monster actor and a younger actor. We asked
\nFlorin Piersic Jr. what needs, desires and quests led to this proposal to
\nunveil the spectacle of life from behind
\nthe stage of a theatre: <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
\n
\n
<\/p>\n
There
\nare things that come to bring calm into an area of theatre, the area in which
\npeople climb pedestals, they look down on you. But in the end, they are still
\npeople. And it is a good thing to recall that. Because the magic of theatre
\nworks, it depends on the lighting, it depends on a lot of things. And it is a
\ngood thing to remember that. Actors are very fragile and unhappy a lot of the
\ntime, with a regular baggage of things, and a huge baggage of imagined issues.
\nThe ones that the imagined characters they carry around have. And that makes
\nthem special. But I believe that certain lines from this show had to be uttered
\nin this show, lines that balance the scales. Because I don’t think a certain
\nkind of exacerbated enthusiasm is healthy. I am referring to the enthusiasm of
\nthe audience for the actors. There is a charisma that an actor has, that of a
\nsuperman. This is our impression, but we are all people. And in fact this is
\nwhat the show displays.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
\n
\n
<\/p>\n
We talked to Marcel Iures and Florin
\nPiersic Jr.. after their performance at the Arad New Theatre International
\nFestival, the twentieth since its premiere in March. Stage Dogs filled the big hall of
\nthe Ioan Slavici Classical Theatre. It sells out every time. You may
\nwonder if the audience comes there for the actors or for the script. Here is
\nFlorin Piersic Jr.: <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
\n
\n
<\/p>\n
I was thinking at some point who
\nwas going to ask the question. Was it going to be just colleagues? Or theatre
\ncritics? And now I am startled to discover that this hidden world, behind the
\nscenes, is interested in this, as long as people identify with these actors.
\nAnd identify inner feelings. And I say: yes, it is possible. And self-irony
\nworks as a very good weapon.<\/p>\n
\n
\n
\n
<\/p>\n
In the end we went behind the stage,
\nto find out how Florin Piersic Jr. and Marcel Iures worked together in
\nrehearsal. Here is Florin Piersic Jr.: <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
\n
\n
<\/p>\n
What was incredible in rehearsal,
\nand reflects now in the show, is the fact that we always had available healthy
\nlaughter, telling each other stories, things relevant to this context, about
\nhow down to earth actors really are. We told each other loads of things, and we
\nwere very happy about it. And this helps now, because I believe this show is
\nlargely a comedy. It is good to know that. I don’t believe in drama without a
\nbit of comedy. As it is in life.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
\n
\n
<\/p>\n
Here is now Marcel Iures: <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
\n
\n
<\/p>\n
It was a good experience, a good
\nencounter, we did not simply glide past each other. You can imitate and ruin a
\nrelationship to preserve your glory, your legend. That is foolish. The idea of
\na clash of celebrities, of names, is terrible. I don’t believe in that. On the
\ncontrary, I believe in dissolving, because in the end we dissolve one against
\nthe other or one in each pother. I know that sounds haughty, but this is the
\ndirection in which the effort runs. This is the basic effort of actors when
\nthey meet. This is what collaboration means. You can shake hands, to
\nunderstand, and no longer feel ashamed, or fake shyness. In theatre we are laid
\nbare. <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Featuring two of Romania’s best known-actors, Stage Dogs is based on David Mamets \u201cA Life in the Theatre.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":129,"featured_media":162099,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[44685],"tags":[],"coauthors":[],"class_list":["post-162098","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-world-of-culture"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n