On March 27, World Theatre Day, the Yakub Kolas National Academic Drama Theatre in Vitebsk will premiere the dramatic comedy "Hospital at the End of the World" based on the play by contemporary Bulgarian playwright Hristo Boychev, the theatre informed BELTA.
Viewers are invited to laugh and grieve, as the funny and sad often border each other, both on stage and in reality. "Five patients, by the will of fate, find themselves in the same hospital ward. One does not know their past, others are unsure of their future, someone dreams of freedom, someone wants to escape to Switzerland or die quietly. In 'Hospital at the End of the End of the World,' there are no right or wrong, everyone makes peace with their conscience," the theatre explained. "The dramatic comedy is filled with amusing life situations, topical jokes with a touch of absurdity, and ironic characters in whom many viewers will recognise themselves."
The production is being worked on by the artistic director of the Yakub Kolas National Academic Drama Theatre, Mikhail Krasnobayev (who is the director, translator of the play into his native language, and author of the musical arrangement), and set designer Svetlana Makarenko.
The dramatic comedy by the Bulgarian author will be performed by Vitebsk actors. The cast includes Alexander Bazuk, Gennady Gaiduk, Honoured Artist of Belarus Grigory Shatko, Vladislav Zhuravlev, Alexey Stoma, Evgeny Beresnev, German Dymaretsky, Maxim Tsarev, Valentina Bogdanova, Honoured Artist of Belarus Tamara Skvortsova, Artem Blokhin, Svetlana Sukhodolova, Honoured Artist of Belarus Vyacheslav Grushov, Yulia Krashevskaya, Nina Obukhova, Anna Dubchenko, Anastasia Revchenko-Lukyanova, Timur Zhusupov, and Dmitry Kovalenko.
Hristo Boychev is an author well-known in many European countries, and productions of his works are highly successful. The play "Hospital at the End of the World" has been staged in Bosnia, Bulgaria, Turkey, Sweden, Serbia, Russia, Romania, Macedonia, and Germany. In Belarus, the only production was staged at the Kupala Theatre in 1990 under the title "Switzerland, Switzerland…".