The Transylvanian Postdramatic Theatre of Radu Afrim

Abstract

One of the leading figures of contemporary Romanian theatre, director Radu Afrim, has been working with Hungarian companies for more than a decade, producing more than a dozen performances, which has its own significance under the circumstances that in his director’s theatre, the text is never taken for granted, be it a pre-existing and pre-chosen dramatic text or the product of a collective effort. Nevertheless, due to his peculiar, non-hierarchical handling of all the theatrical devices, where equally intensive attention is accorded to each one of them, his productions always fall under the category of postdramatic theatre. We are dealing here with two aspects of contemporary Eastern European theatre: the blurring lines between director’s theatre and collective production and the multiethnic character of it. As an aesthetic experience, his performances may be best described using Gilles Deleuze’s terms of aspects and perceptions.