Ghetto Sheriff at Minimum Investment

As part of the Hungary Live Festival, the first Hungarian Theater Festival in New York, Ghetto Sheriff will have its US premiere. Ghetto Sheriff is a production of the Örkény Theatre in Hungary. How can we talk about the biggest trauma of the 20th century, the Holocaust? According to the renowned director, János Mohácsi and his former students, we can do so with the help of Jewish jokes and songs, documents from the 30’s and 40’s, and by reciting them – in pitch darkness. The texts were selected by János Mohácsi and the actors, predominantly from personal reminiscences: Texts from the film “Shoah” by Claude Lanzmann, case studies, survivor testimonies, literary works, diary notes, historical sources, official reports and personal collections to evoke the historical period and the mood of the time. The piece was produced in 2012 as a coproduction of Faculty of Arts of Kaposvár University and FÜGE, one of the leading production houses in Budapest for independent performing arts. Soon it became one of the most famous productions in the country. In 2013 the production received an award by the Hungarian Association of Theatre Critics for Best Independent Performance and Best Music, and in the same year it was programmed in the Hungarian Showcase 2013. FÜGE took care of its distribution until 2016, since then it has been regularly presented at the Örkény István Theatre. The play has been performed in several locations, both in Budapest and all around Hungary. The review of Fidelio noted: At the end of the Ghetto Sheriff performance, we stand up and quietly leave. János Mohacsi again did a brilliant job. But there is no clapping because it is not possible to say Thank You for what we have just heard." The production will be performed in English Creator: János Mohácsi Creator-Performers: Eszter Bánfalvi, Csilla Radnay, Ádám Lábodi, Anna Boros, Tamás Keresztény, Máté Lakatos, Bálint Formán, Árpád Némedi, Nóra Rainer-Micsinyei, Diána Nóra Takács, Hella Tolnai and Márton Kovács.