Review: Terrorismi

PRESNYAKOVS DON’T BORE


The Presnyakov brothers Oleg (b. 1969) and Vladimir (b. 1974) were born and influential in the city of Yekaterinburg in the Ural region, which was called Sverdlovsk during the Soviet era. The brothers have studied at the city’s university, where they have also worked as teachers. In just a few years, the brothers, who have written together, have also become the top names in new Russian drama.

Perhaps the most famous of the brothers’ 10 plays is Terrorism, an absurd everyday drama Terrorism, which premiered at the Moscow Art Theatre just a few weeks after the Moscow theatre hijacking in 2002 and will soon be seen in 16 countries, which uninhibitedly mixes different genres of theatre and is spiced up with black humour and musical sequences, among other things.


The play Terrorism expands the concept to include all possible interpersonal relationships or activities that disrupt life. The drama that begins with a terror warning caused by a bag left unguarded at the door of an airport terminal, the closure of the airport and the cancellation of flights quickly and unexpectedly cuts into the terror that many people face at home and at work.


The 8 actors in the performance, directed by Viktor Drevitski, are Markku Huhtamo, Pekka Huotari, Santeri Kinnunen, Vappu Nalbantoglu, Marjatta Raita, Sampo Sarkola, Pekka Strang and Eija Vilpas.

Over the course of half a dozen episodes, they play a number of different roles, and there is not much time left for deepening. Still, the performance is also a victory for the actors, as they build a functional and believable performance from seemingly quite detached scenes, which at times is cold, sometimes laughs, but never leaves the viewer completely cold.