Four characters trapped between past and future, unable to share a home…
A stage replaced by a disordered apartment…
Amid the cacophony of broken, fragmented, and reassembled Lego pieces, the sound of death, trapped in the voice of an old woman…
With House – A Cacophonic Play, Ve Diger Seyler Toplulugu welcomes guests into an actual apartment, exploring themes of new dramaturgy, stage technologies, and interdisciplinarity. Written and directed by Yeşim Özsoy, the play stages the struggle of four characters who live in the same home and face the dilemma of whether or not to demolish it. Through this decision, they confront issues of past/future, tradition/modernity. The play is built on the unresolved cacophony between the past and future, as the characters fracture and fragment like Lego pieces beneath the imbalance of a reconstructed photograph.
The production redefines the conventional audience-performer relationship by erasing the boundaries between the two. Instead of a typical stage, House – A Cacophonic Play takes place in a real apartment, transforming spectators into guests. Due to the apartment setting, each performance is limited to 15 audience members.
Described as a “unique experience” by Time Out Istanbul, and called “a play dominated by symbolic style” by critic Üstün Akmen, the performance was also introduced by Akşam newspaper under the headline: “The first apartment theatre in Turkey!” It was performed during the 2003–2004 and 2004–2005 seasons at a flat on Şeyhbender Street in Tünel and at GalataPerform.
House – A Cacophonic Play was invited in June 2004 by Manfred Beilharz, President of the International Theatre Institute (ITI), to the “Neue Stücke aus Europa” (New Plays from Europe Theatre Biennale) in Wiesbaden, a continuation of the former Bonn Biennale, featuring emerging European playwrights. Alongside Fault Line by Behiç Ak, performed by Genco Erkal, Home represented Turkey at the festival between June 17–27, 2004, among works from across Europe curated by acclaimed playwright Tankred Dorst and Dr. Manfred Beilharz. Beilharz referred to Home as “one of the festival’s most prominent works.” The play also appeared in Berlin during the “Şimdi / Now” Festival at Hebbel Theater, in a space known as “Wilson Raum,” frequently used by Robert Wilson for rehearsals.
Written & Directed by: Yeşim Özsoy
Set & Costume Design: Başak Özdoğan Pirim
Photography & Graphic Design: Orhan Cem Çetin
Assistant Director: Onur Özbek
Technical Supervisor: Ahmet Demireydi
Cast
Sanem Öge
Ceyda Aşar
Sedat Kalkavan
Alev Cınbarcı