New expat theater troupe debuts tonight in Budapest

If there were anything normal about the English-language production of Equus in Budapest, it would be its' abnormality.

Monika Jones

(Top) Director Rhett Stevens is a British actor and nine-year Budapest resident. He started the newly-minted Equus Productions to give locals an opportunity to perform in English-language productions. (Bottom) British expat Liana Andrews and Hungarian actor Ilyés Lénárd are among the cast and and crew of twelve.

The 1973 play "Equus," famous for its dramatic staging and the intense psychological treatment of Alan, a young man who blinds six horses, opens in Budapest on April 30. In addition to the content, Equus is an unusual addition to the Budapest theater circuit since the amateur production brings together Hungarian and native-English speaking actors.

The production is the brain-child of local English teacher, British expat and seasoned actor Rhett Stevens, who decided the play will be the first production of a local theater group he's named Equus Productions.

The play traces a mindless act of violence. And in doing so, Equus creates a world that allows the senseless to make sense.

"On many levels, Equus is about normalcy," says Stevens. "And the play is an abnormal English-production since over half the cast is native-Hungarian speaking. This isn't a bad thing, though. It's richer this way."

At a rehearsal for the climatic scene of Act One, a tall, lanky Miklós "Minki" Béres, who plays the troubled young Alan, falls into a trance. He tosses back his mane of blond hair and his blue eyes take on a steely cool. Around him, in the smoky haze of smoldering cigarettes, the cast marches.

"This one of the many little scenes that makes the play powerful," Stevens says. Equus made headlines most recently when Daniel Radcliffe, the Harry Potter star, made his theater debut as Alan.

Béres slowly feigns stripping off his clothes. Then, in a fit of passion, he mounts Mark Clifton, who plays a horse named Nugget. Chanting and sweating, Alan performs a sexual act astride Clifton, galloping into an intense mystic dream.

Meanwhile, his psychologist, Hungarian actor Lénárd Ilyés watches aghast, wondering how to treat a condition so moving, so frightening, so alive.

Indeed, the play grapples with how to deal with abnormally.

"When you live your life, you always have questions about how it is supposed to go. You are never satisfied. I know many normal people who are abnormal, and some abnormal people who are normal," says Ilyés. He plays the middle-aged psychologist who feels powerless around his young patient, Alan. "This is what you have to ask."

Béres, who is acting in his first English-language production, isn't all that concerned with the difficulty of playing an anxious adolescent who has a fixation on horses.

"Well, I'm psychotic myself," Béres jokes. "Ok, ok, ok, no, no it isn't easy to be natural in this role, since I'm different from Alan. But he is natural in the role, so I find him and become natural."

However, for the skinny on exactly how natural - or nude - Béres will be requires attending the show, says Kata Fábián, who is managing marketing and promotions for Equus Productions.

"I think the show will be a delight for Hungarian and international audiences," says Stevens, "it's accessible to locals due to the content and language."

The international cast also includes Liana Andrews, Steve Anthony, Mark Clifton, Fran Latham, Nóra Mészáros, Matt Watson-Broughton, and Flóra Nagy.

Equus opens on April 30 at Zöld Macska Diákpince and performances will run through May 24. Tickets are Ft 800 (€3) for students and Ft 1,400 (€5.50) for adults.

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