PREMIÉRA Mario és a varázsló | Mário a kúzelník

The story takes place in a small Italian town; its residents, people with their weaknesses and hidden wounds, come to the performance of the itinerant illusionist Cipolla - all of them carry a certain shadow, a secret that they would prefer to hide from the world. Cipolla senses them mercilessly and exploits them: he unabashedly exposes them, ridicules them and turns them into part of his show, further deepening their dependence and subjugation. Against the background of seemingly harmless entertainment, the story of Thomas Mann reveals the mechanisms of manipulation, obedience and mob psychosis. Cipolla controls his audience and forces them to act against their will until his power play ends tragically - in an act of defiance by the young waiter Mário. This act symbolizes the individual's last attempt to preserve his dignity and free will. Mario and the Magician reveals the psychology of totalitarian ideologies, but at the same time it is a timeless image not only of human vulnerability, but also of the desire for authority and the illusion of excellence.

---

Author: Thomas Mann
Director: Péter Telihay
Adaptation, dramaturgy: Emese Varga
Production: Matúš Benža
Artistic collaboration: Sándor Daróczi
Assistant director: Máté Kantár, posl. VŠMU

Cast:
Mário: William Heringes, posl. VŠMU
Cipolla: Otto Culka
Sylvia: Katarína Šafaříková
New Year's Eve: Sára Gál, posl. VŠMU
Angelo: Barnabás Balla
Vittorio: Mátyás Takács, posl. VŠMU

---

TICKETS: €11 / €7 (discounted)
Tickets: https://bit.ly/3K7CSjr

---

The production is presented in Hungarian with Slovak subtitles.

The production was created in cooperation of the University of Performing Arts in Bratislava, the Theater Institute and the Symbol civic association.