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THE SHIFTING POINT OF FEAR AND TREMBLING
become a precursor of postmodern performance,"" since its occasional
slow-down’® and silence as well as its visual and physical orientation did
not transgress the limits of logocentric theatre. Besides the praise of the
“detailed and imaginative construction of even the tiniest moments”,’®
some critics condemned the decelerated flow of events, highly unusual in a
comedy.’!° But Tovstonogov’s mise-en-scéne let duality prevail in rhythm as
well: not only did it frequently interrupt energetic, lively and farcical scenes
but also enlarged micro situations in order to make the deep structure of
interpretation understood.
ACTING
Tovstonogov followed Meyerhold in the development of acting but approached
him from the late Stanislavsky. Seeking adequate physical actions and
charging them with sufficient emotions, he tried to stimulate “the inner life of
characters so as to help actors find their life on stage”.”" Regarding “words as a
result of actions”, he was searching for “the starting deeds in all situations”.’”
Since he had not known the actors’ and presumed they would need much
so much that he falls on his face twice on the stairs, when he starts to bribe the pseudo¬
government inspector.” Mihalyi: Tovsztonogov—Latinovits, 776. — “Khlopov, the director
of education (the excellent Janos Rajz) often faints in the arms of his partners with a single
clown-gag repeated. The danced dream duos of mother and daughter (Hédi Väradi and
Mariann Moor) are parodies of the romantic theatre of illusions (or operetta, if you will).
The drunken Khlestakov’s increasingly unscrupulous dance in front of the terrified officials
is a choreographed buffoonery (with eight people sitting on a single chair). We never feel
a mix of styles in these scenes. Tovstonogov always finds the form by which he can fully
express the basic idea of the drama.” Koltai: Tovsztonogov és A revizor, 11.
This is what Zsuzsa Radnöti refers to, when, describing the theatre of the 1960s and 1970s, she
observes that “this new type of text and theatricality, inspired by the avantgarde, were living
in an exciting simultaneity, in a productive symbiosis. The great reformers of stage languages
and their productions [among which she mentions Tovstonogov’s The Government Inspector
later] have not altered texts significantly yet and respected the internal intellectual and
external dramaturgical constraints of plays.” Zsuzsa Radnoti: A magyar posztdramatikusok.
Az irodalmi drámától az előadásszövegig, Irodalomtörténet 36:3 (2005), 257.
Cf. Tovstonogov “creates great silences so that gestures can really show up. He brakes down.
He stops. He fixes the eye to one point. He repeats the same motif over and over again. He
uses recurrent noise effects.” Galsai: A revizor, 7.
Létay: A polgármester, 13.
Cf. "Tovstonogov brings the underlying content of the text to the surface. He does not
let go of anything of Gogol’s sentences and situations. That’s why we sometimes feel the
performance exhausting and lengthy at the end of the second part.” Koltai: Tovsztonogov és
A revizor, 11.
Saad: A revizor pröbäin, 6.
™ Tbid., 5.
713 During an earlier visit, Tovstonogov saw some of the National Theatre’s performances
and chose his actors on the basis of this experience. In some cases, he turned against the
management of the theatre, which had recommended actors for each role. Instead of three
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