Kadmos establishes bridges among cultures via theater

A pan-Mediterranean production of renowned Israeli director Amos Gitai's “The War of the Sons of Light against the Sons of Darkness,” the first-ever project by the newly established international theater network Kadmos, will be staged tonight and tomorrow night at the historic Rumeli Fortress on the Bosporus coast. The play's cast brings French, Greek, Spanish, Israeli, Palestinian and Turkish theatrical actors together on the same stage and most notably features veteran French stage and screen actress Jeanne Moreau as its narrator.

Kadmos was formed by France's Avignon Festival, the Grec Festival of Barcelona, Athens' Epidaurus Festival and the İstanbul International Theater Festival with the aim of strengthening cultural ties across the Mediterranean.

“If you ask why the network was named after Kadmos, according to mythology Kadmos is the brother of Europa. His wisdom, peacefulness and his efforts in conveying the Phoenician alphabet to Greece and providing information flow between the West and the East united us on this name,” explains Professor Dikmen Gürün, the director of the İstanbul International Theater Festival, in an interview with Today's Zaman.

Kadmos also worked with Paris' Odéon Theater on “The War of the Sons of Light against the Sons of Darkness,” which had its world premiere earlier this month at the Avignon Festival.

“There's a certain traffic among [theater] festivals,” says Gürün. “In this respect, very good communication has been established among these festivals, especially in recent years. The network was born out of the idea of ‘emphasizing the uniting power of these festivals' in the areas of culture and arts across the Mediterranean. It is very efficacious for artists from different cultures to produce a work together, and with Kadmos, I can say that we are presenting a typical example of multiculturalism.”

The project does not have an end date for now. “I hope Kadmos or the European Network of Mediterranean Festivals keeps its permanence,” notes Gürün. “As four major Mediterranean festivals, we've come together in order to produce constructive works, and its [Kadmos'] permanency depends on us,” she says.

But the effort was not without difficulties. “Of course, it is not easy for four festivals to meet for a common project, a single production,” says Gürün. “There have been some problems, and there will certainly be others. What is important is being able to get beyond these problems. Our biggest advantage is that the festival directors understand each others' language. ‘The War of the Sons of Light against the Sons of the Darkness' was not an easy project. Amos Gitai's viewpoint of the theater passes through [his experience in] cinema. This transition would occasionally cause some tension, but the problems have been overcome anyway. For instance, the critical eye of [Turkish actor] Cüneyt Türel in his relationship with Gitai during the rehearsals made everything easier. In fact, there have not been that many problems, but I evaluate every one of them as part of the charm of the project,” says Gürün. “In the end, what festival or play comes out smoothly, without any problems?”

The multicultural play has also drawn a wide range of reactions from its multinational audience. Since it features the international star Moreau, the play generated intense interest from both theater and cinema buffs. “We staged seven plays in a mine outside the city of Avignon, and all the tickets were sold out on the first day. It was the same case in Barcelona,” says Gürün. However, the Barcelona and Athens audiences could not watch the play. “The Grec Theatre, which can seat 2,000 people, was packed for the two performances, but as the result of an unfortunate event and since Moreau was ill, both the Barcelona and Athens performances had to be canceled,” Gürün explains. “I don't know exactly when, but new dates will be determined for these two cities. The Paris Odéon Theatre, which is not included in the Kadmos [network] but is a co-producer of the play, included the play in its repertoire [for the upcoming season].”

Making theater universal

Unlike in cinema, the language factor is a difficulty that theater has to overcome in order to be understood and appreciated by global audiences. Thus, such projects contribute to bringing theater to a universal level. “Theater no longer remains at the national level,” says Gürün. “There's a noteworthy expansion in this area. Joint projects and the meeting of artists from different countries on the same stage are important developments, and these [have impacts which will] last for years.”

“The War of the Sons of Light against the Sons of the Darkness” will not be Kadmos' one and only project. “Kadmos will bring artists of different countries together on various occasions and in workshops. Educational and [artist] exchange programs will be organized. Platforms where common problems and issues related to culture and arts are discussed will be established,” notes Gürün.

Raising the bar

Although Kadmos' future projects are not clear at the moment, decisions about new projects will be made soon, and Turkish theater should definitely contribute to the network and the projects at a higher level if its wants to make itself heard. “The principal purpose of the İstanbul Theater Festival and the [organizer, the İstanbul Foundation for Culture and Arts] İKSV is not only to invite overseas theater companies to Turkey, but also to establish a [means of] transfer of Turkish theater to other countries and expand arenas for young artists,” says Gürün. “Turkish theater should be represented on the international level with its playwrights, actors, directors and set designers. We are trying to do our best to realize this, but unfortunately we don't have the opportunities that the Avignon, Athens or Barcelona [theater festivals] have. Our aim is to raise the bar. … I believe that in the years to come our playwrights will be much more well-known all over the world. These are things that require time, and we did a lot in a very short time.”

Standing against wars

Prominent Turkish stage actor Cüneyt Türel plays the Roman Emperor Titus in Amos Gitai's “The War of the Sons of Light against the Sons of Darkness,” in which Jeanne Moreau plays the narrator, Josephus Flavius, and Jerome Koenig plays the role of Emperor Vespasianus.

In the play, Flavius narrates the horrors of war, which has become a destiny for all peoples in the Middle East. Besides the story of how Jerusalem was conquered by the Romans, based on accounts by Flavius in the A.D. first century and the Dead Sea scrolls, the play also features quotes from Rainer Maria Rilke and Oscar Wilde. The play recalls a multilingual oratorio as it combines a number of languages, including French, Turkish, Arabic and Hebrew.

 “The play is a work of historian Josephus Flavius about the war which the Roman Empire started in order to stamp out the uprisings of the Jews,” notes Dikmen Gürün. “The play, which focuses on concepts such as a nation's homeland, war, oppression and domination, in fact stands against all wars throughout the world. While questioning the violence experienced [in the Middle East] throughout history, Amos Gitai's political stance can clearly be observed in this play.”

The play received mixed reactions following its premiere in Avignon. “Apart from the enormous interest of the audience, some critics mocked the play while some praised it. However, the point upon which all critics agreed was that Jeanne Moreau was an esteemed actress. The fact that she was a stage legend was emphasized once more,” says Gürün. “It will be an enchanting experience for the audience in İstanbul to watch Türel and Moreau on the same stage.”