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KÁLMÁN NÁDASDY AND GÉZA PÁRTOS: FREE WIND, 1950
(temporarily) turning its back on the star system," and in the convergence
P y g y 8
of realist acting and the tradition of playing operettas. Reviewers also noticed
“the nuanced art of some actors’ skills”, and appreciated the avoidance of old
manners, which helped the directors make people “live on stage”.'*° However,
they still found plenty of “old theatrical tricks, especially in the bar scenes”.’®”
The “great and realistic movement” of the choir, i.e. the development in
handling the crowd, which had not been seen before, was said to be a merit
of the mise-en-scéne.'* Four actresses also initiated a “movement” in order to
make the crowd live. Having recognized the importance of the crowd, they
wanted to be part of it to provide assistance to extras.!?° However, the critic
of Szabad Nep still felt this effort insufficient and reproached the crowd for
“not living on stage, but remaining a group of static extras.”!” In any case,
the work of the two directors could indeed be focused on the coordination
of those scenes that required considerable human resources, as it was the
main virtue of both Nädasdy and Pärtos. In addition, critics’ attention was
drawn to the elimination of "sweet sentimentalism" and cheap humor."
They also appreciated the strong atmosphere,’ but valued “the impressively
underlined political message” much more than the sensual experience of the
production.’ It was this “underlining” that the Soviet conduct, to which we
find several references in the press, could have influenced.'”* However, given
the text and music tailored to domestic conditions, it is difficult to imagine
what this conduct helped to do except performing a compulsory task.
18
a
Cf. “I saw a slice of life on stage, the characters were living people. The prima donna had no
entrée, it was something out of the ordinary, and there was another great advantage of the
play: I didn’t see any stars in it. | saw an operetta ensemble with actors playing the smallest,
silent parts as enthusiastically as any of the protagonists. It is certainly an important
achievement of the mise-en-scéne.” Speech by Kalman Perényi, Szövetségi vita, 8.
Jemnitz: Szabad szél, 4.
187 L.J.: Szabad szél, 6.
188 Horvai, Szövetségi vita,25.
As the crowd plays an active role in Free Wind, Ilona Dajbukát, Jolán Mátyás, Lili Murányi
and Fili Rajnai wanted to overcome the limitations of the production of The Grand Duchess
of Gerolstein. “The crowd had been standing still there and accepted the fact that they would
not get bread because it was a holiday. There had been no protest at all.” Speech by Lili
Murányi, Szövetségi vita, 18.
190 L.J.: Szabad szél, 6.
191 Fogarasi: Szabad szél, 484. — "While we had been frequently immersed in endless dialogues
of the comedians, full of old and older jokes in previous shows of the theatre, this time you
could enjoy the work of artists who used their talent with vigor and enthusiasm for the
success of the production.” Ibid.
E.g. “you can feel the suppressed mood of revolution in the first scene, foreshadowing the
rest of the plot.” Speech by Jenö Krausz, industrial worker, Szévetségi vita, 13-14.
Matrai-Betegh: Szabad szél, 5.
Cf. “We received a lot of advice on several phone calls from the Moscow director of the play
and felt that we took another step forward with the help of the Soviet Union.” Ratonyi: Merre
tart a vidim müfaj?, 68. - When the Soviet composer, Yuri Milyutin visited the Budapest
production of The Count of Luxembourg three years later, Margit Gaspar also referred
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192
19:
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