Maxim Gorki/Oskaras Koršunovas
Dugne/The Lower Depths
Lithuanian director Oskaras Koršunovas directs the fourth act of Maxim Gorky’s The Lower Depths. At this point, Luka, who had given the dwellers in this miserable asylum some hope for a better life in the future, only lives on in the memory of those left behind. Koršunovas examines Gorky’s masterpiece as a complement to the fundamental situation depicted in Beckett’s Waiting for Godot and evokes a tragic world of absurd hopelessness.
While Beckett’s protagonists still inhabit the illusion that an unknown but longed-for guest will sooner or later appear and bring about a change in their lives, there is no room for such hopes in Koršunovas’ world. Abandoned and restless, his characters are mired in the abyss of their squalid lives. Only vodka can help them to relieve their desperation.
A minimalist stage, a tiny room where the characters sit facing the audience like in some Last Supper – they make confessions, quarrel, discuss the meaning of life with deep melancholy and guzzle strong alcohol, until at some point the first glass is offered to the audience. Is this still theatre, or can we all take part in a discussion about hope? In Russia, speaking openly about God is impossible without vodka – on both sides of the stage. Oskaras Koršunovas’ latest participation at Wiener Festwochen dates back to 2000 and Hotel Europa.
Pre-sale only via Wiener Festwochen: www.festwochen.at; T: +43 1 589 22 22
Discussion with the audience on 25 May, following the performance.
Credits
Text
Maxim Gorki
Director
Oskaras Koršunovas
Stage design
Dainius Liškevičius
Costumes
Agnė Kuzmickaitė
Music
Antanas Jasenka
Engineering and sound
Mindaugas Repsys
Props and costumes
Aldona Majakovaite
Stage management
Malvina Matickiene
Tour management
Audra Zukaityte
Ensemble
Dainius Gavenonis, Rasa Samuolytė, Darius Gumauskas, Julius Žalakevičius, Darius Meškauskas, Jonas Verseckas, Tomas Žaibus, Giedrius Savickas, Nelė Savičenko, Rytis Saladžius
A production by OKT / Vilniaus miesto teatras.
Dates & Tickets
May 2016
brut 20 €
brut 20 €
brut 20 €
brut 20 €
brut
Karlsplatz 5, 1010 Wien
Info
Discussion with the audience on 25 May, following the performance.
brut all over Vienna
brut nordwest
accessible
Nordwestbahnstraße 8-10, 1200 Vienna
Subway: U1, U2 (Praterstern), U4 (Friedensbrücke), U6 (Dresdnerstraße) Tram: 5 (Nordwestbahnstraße) Bus: 5A (Wasnergasse)
accessible
studio brut
not accessible
Zieglergasse 25, 1070 Wien
Subway: U3 (Zieglergasse), Tram: 49 (Westbahnstraße / Zieglergasse)
not accessible